By Agis Riyani
Have you ever heard of Pangasius fish? Maybe for some people the name is not familiar. However, if it is called patin fish, it certainly sounds familiar, right? Patin fish (Pangasius pangasius) is one of Indonesia's aquaculture commodities included in the aquaculture industrialization program so that its production will continue to be boosted from year to year. National catfish production in 2012 amounted to 340,000 tons, an almost 10-fold increase from 2007 production of only 37,000 tons. Areas in Indonesia that are well known as centers of patin cultivation are the provinces of South Kalimantan, Jambi, South Sumatra, and West Java.

The increase in production is faced with various challenges, such as increased need for quality seeds, increased need for feed, decreased water quality and environment, threat of disease attack, efficient and effective cultivation techniques, good post-harvest handling, domestic and export market purchasing power, as well as social issues and business legality, including the suitability of cultivation activities with regional spatial planning.

WWF-Indonesia through its aquaculture program took the initiative to contribute to the effort to realize sustainable and responsible patin farming practices. Starting with the preparation of a practical guide called ""Better Management Practice (BMP) Patin Fish Farming"", the process of making Patin Fish Farming BMP was carried out since February 2014 by conducting field data collection and desk study in South Kalimantan and Jambi.

In June 2014, WWF-Indonesia held an external expert review on the draft BMP for Patin Fish Farming which aimed as a dialog to improve the draft BMP for Patin Fish Farming, involving competent parties in the field of patin fish farming. With this activity, it is hoped that the BMP produced can meet scientific but practical principles and can be accepted by all parties. The activity was attended by representatives from the Sukabumi Freshwater Aquaculture Development Center (BBPBAT), Jambi Freshwater Aquaculture Center (BBAT) and BBAT Mandiangin, a group of catfish farmers in Jambi, as well as representatives from the Dee Jee Fish Sukabumi company.

Currently, the process of preparing the Patin Fish Cultivation BMP has reached the layout stage which will then be revised again before being printed and socialized. In the future, the Patin Fish Farming BMP is expected to serve as a guide to patin fish farmers, both small and large scale, to practice responsible patin fish farming methods while maintaining the quality of the surrounding environment.