Abstract
Aquaculture plays a crucial role in global food production, and the biofloc technology (BFT)
offers an innovative approach for intensive and sustainable farming of aquaculture species.
This study focused on evaluating different local carbon sources (carob powder, sugar
molasses, and date molasses) in the BFT system for the Nile tilapia farming in Algeria.
The results showed that the BFT system requires a preparatory phase, but once established, it
significantly improves water quality and tilapia growth performance compared to the
traditional water recirculation system. Furthermore, the local carbon sources proved to be
viable alternatives to molasses and sugar, without any negative impact on environmental
parameters and zootechnical performance.
These findings provide promising prospects for increased adoption of BFT in aquaculture,
especially in arid regions with limited water resources. The utilization of food by-products
derived from dates or carob could contribute to the sustainability of this approach.
Key words: biofloc systems, C/N ratio, Nile Tilapia, carbon source, biomass gain,
conversion indicator.