Biofloc technology promotes economic resilience and low financial risk in juvenile pirapitinga production under moderate feed restriction

Economic sustainability is a major challenge for intensive aquaculture, particularly in emerging production regions where profitability and financial stability are essential for long-term development. Biofloc technology (BFT) can improve resource-use efficiency and increase the resilience of aquaculture production systems. This study evaluated the bioeconomic performance and financial risk of juvenile pirapitinga (Piaractus brachypomus), an important Amazonian fish species, reared under different feed restriction regimes in biofloc systems. The experiment was conducted for 30 days using five treatments: daily feeding in a biofloc system (BFT-7A), feeding for six (BFT-6A), five (BFT-5A), or four days per week (BFT-4A) in biofloc systems, and a clear-water control with daily feeding (CW-7A). The initial mean weight was 1.05 ± 0.09 g, and the stocking density corresponded to 333 fish m⁻³. Economic indicators included production costs, gross revenue, profit, profit margin, and break-even point. Financial risk was assessed through Monte Carlo simulation with 10,000 iterations considering variations in feed costs, labor, fingerling prices, and selling prices. Daily feeding in biofloc systems resulted in the highest economic performance, with a profit of R$173.99 m⁻³ and a profit margin of 39.41%. Feed restriction of one or two days per week maintained positive economic returns while reducing operational costs, whereas three consecutive days of feed restriction reduced profitability. Probabilistic analysis revealed a low-risk profile across all production strategies. The probability of financial loss was zero for BFT-7A, BFT-6A, BFT-5A, and CW-7A, reaching only 0.39% in BFT-4A. These findings demonstrate that juvenile pirapitinga production in biofloc systems exhibits strong economic resilience and low financial risk. Feed restriction of one or two days per week may represent a viable management strategy to reduce production costs while maintaining economic viability, contributing to more resilient and efficient Amazonian aquaculture systems.