According to the Law of the Republic of Indonesia Number 31 of 2004 concerning Fisheries Article 1 paragraph (1), fisheries are all activities related to the management and utilization of fish resources and the environment that are carried out in the fishery business system. In 2017, Indonesia produced 841.75 thousand tons of catfish, which increased to 1.81 million tons in 2018 [1]. Catfish consumption in Indonesia was 46.49 kg/capita in 2017, rising to 50.59 kg/capita in 2018 [1]. Increased consumer demand drove the increase in production.

The Breeding and Rearing Business, located in Bingkulu Village, Tambang Ulang District, Tanah Laut Regency, South Kalimantan Province, is one of the pioneers of the well-known catfish farming business in Tanah Laut Regency. This Breeding and Rearing Business has been in operation for 12 years and the catfish seeds produced by the Breeding and Rearing Business are of superior quality. With the superiority of catfish seeds from the Breeding and Rearing Business that can be harvested within 2.5 months of stocking the seedlings, the Breeding and Rearing Business has a distinct advantage in attracting cultivators to join the Breeding and Rearing Business partnership. Furthermore, cultivators who are members of the Breeding and Rearing Business partnership are constantly supervised and mentored, so crop failure is extremely unlikely to happen. The benefit of joining a Breeding and Rearing Business partnership is that cultivators are no longer perplexed about selling their crops because the Breeding and Rearing Businesses already have their own broker who sells crops from cultivators.

Partnerships, according to Musanif et al. [2], are aimed at increasing the ability and role of small businesses as tough, independent businesses that strengthen the national economy. Business partnerships in agriculture are a type of collaboration between various parties in the development of agribusiness enterprises to create agribusiness-oriented modern agriculture capable of increasing income through increased added value and competitiveness and being able to improve the quality of management resources such as cultivators/farmer groups/gapoktan and cooperative.              

The number of cultivators joining the Breeding and Rearing Business in mid-2022 is 15 cultivators. With a total of 15 cultivators in the Breeding and Rearing Business, they can produce 15 tons of catfish in one month, but there is still a 20%, or the equivalent of 3 tons, shortage of catfish yields to meet market demand. At the same time, some cultivators must end their partnership with the Breeding and Rearing Business at the end of 2022. Breeding and rearing companies choose to end partnerships with multiple cultivators because they do not have a single goal, which has an impact on catfish production. Breeding and Rearing businesses are increasingly facing shortages. As a result, there is a need for increased catfish production, but efforts are currently being hampered by concerns about the economic feasibility or profitability of farming, as well as the high cost of production.

Thus, efforts to develop small businesses must include financial aspects, one of which is analyzing costs to determine the amount of profit to be obtained [3]. A B/C ratio analysis compares Total Revenue (TR) to Total Cost (TC). The greater the B/C value, the greater the business profit. In general, a business is said to be viable if the B/C value obtained is greater than 1. This is possible because the higher the B/C of a business, the higher the level of profit obtained by the business. B/C is an abbreviation for Benefit Cost Ratio, which is a comparison of Total Revenue (TR) and Total Cost (TC).

The Breeding and Rearing Business in Bingkulu Village, Tanah Laut Regency, South Kalimantan Province, was chosen specifically for the research. Based on the fact that the location is a fishing business run through a partnership system. While catfish farming was the focus of this study. 

This study was carried out in the village of Bingkulu, Tanah Laut Regency, South Kalimantan Province. Catfish cultivators who worked with Breeding and Rearing Business were among those who responded. Non-probability sampling is used to determine the sample, specifically saturated sampling (census), which is the sampling method in which all members of the population are sampled. The number of respondents who will be studied has been determined to be four. Each of them is a catfish cultivator working in Bingkulu Village, Tambang Ulang District, Tanah Laut Regency, with a Breeding and Rearing Business.

Data Analysis

A descriptive method was used to answer the first objective, which is the analysis of the partnership pattern. A descriptive analysis is a method for investigating an object in the present. The goal of descriptive analysis is to create a systematic, factual and accurate description of the facts, nature and relationships between the phenomena under consideration [4]. In this study, descriptive analysis was used to provide an overview of the characteristics of partner catfish cultivators as well as to describe the partnership relationship. The researcher identified the type of partnership pattern between Breeding and Rearing Businesses and partnered catfish cultivators in advance. Interviews were conducted with partnered catfish nurseries and growers. This interview was used to collect saturated data, which was then identified using the dominant theories.

To address the second objective of business feasibility in catfish farming in collaboration with Breeding and Rearing Businesses, a B/C analysis was used to show the amount of profit received for catfish farming for each respondent catfish cultivator partnering with a Breeding and Magnification Business. The B/C ratio analysis can be expressed mathematically as follows [5].

Where:

• B/C: Benefit Cost Ratio

• TR: Total Revenue (Rp)

• TC: Total Cost (Rp)

With Condition

• BCR >1, Raising Catfish is profitable and worth the effort

• BCR = 1, Raising Catfish does not make a profit and does not incur a loss (breakeven)

• BCR <1, Raising Catfish incurs losses and is not economically viable

Partnership Patterns of Breeding and Rearing Business

Partnership is a mutually beneficial business collaboration between cultivators and Partner Companies that includes coaching and development by Partner Companies for mutual need, benefit and strengthening. According to Law No. 9 of the Republic of Indonesia concerning Small Businesses, partnership is cooperation between small businesses and medium or large businesses, accompanied by guidance and development by medium or large businesses, with the main principle of mutual need, benefit and strengthening.

Cultivators are expected to have strong capital, markets and technological capabilities as a weak group in a partnership system. Collaboration between companies and cultivators follows a mutually agreed upon and agreed upon process, with both parties taking into account. In a partnership, the two partners complement each other rather than undermining each other. Partnerships can last a long time if all parties involved feel benefited from the collaboration.

Catfish cultivators who partner with the Breeding and Rearing Business were given good quality seeds, feed loans, guaranteed market certainty and guidance on their own volition because they were considered to have joined the Breeding and Rearing Business. The rapid growth of seedlings from Breeding and Rearing Business could be harvested in 2 - 2.5 months and the mortality rate of the seedlings was also low. The feed loan in question was provided by the Breeding and Rearing Business, which was willing to provide feed loans to catfish cultivators who were partners in the form of finished feed or additional feed. 

Table 1: Cost of Variable in Breeding and Rearing Catfish

Source: Processed Primary Data, 2022

Table 2: Fixed Costs in Catfish Raising Cultivator

Source: Processed Primary Data, 2022

Table 3: Revenue of Catfish Raising Cultivator

Source: Processed Primary Data, 2022

Figure 1: Partnership Framework Between Catfish Cultivators and Breeding & Rearing Businesses

Source: Processed Primary Data, 2022

The Breeding and Rearing Business provided market certainty by ensuring that cultivators were not confused about selling their crops because the crops would be taken directly by the Breeding and Rearing Business, as the Breeding and Rearing Business already had their own broker. The Breeding and Rearing Business provided guidance to partner cultivators on disease management in catfish. Catfish cultivators ought to have their own ponds to become partner cultivators for the Breeding and Rearing Business; at a minimum, cultivators ought to grow catfish of 10,000 fish per period, with a total of 6 ponds and the catfish harvest could not be sold to other brokers. The partnership system implemented by the Breeding and Rearing Business lacked a written agreement and was entirely based on mutual trust.

According to the Figure 1, catfish cultivators who work with Breeding and Rearing Businesses must provide their own fish ponds and manpower. Meanwhile, the Breeding and Rearing Businesses offer production facilities in the form of credit, such as ready-to-stock catfish seeds, main feed in the form of pellets and additional feed in the form of rejected eggs. Furthermore, the Breeding and Rearing Business bears all transportation costs and provides guidance and market certainty to partner catfish cultivators.

Partner catfish cultivators could purchase catfish seeds for Rp. 225,-/head. When the Breeding and Rearing Business purchases catfish production from catfish cultivators, all payments for production facility costs would be deducted directly. Partnered catfish cultivators were not permitted to sell catfish harvests to third parties; all of their farming results ought to be sold to the Breeding and Rearing Businesses in accordance with the agreement. With the Breeding and Rearing Business's guarantee of market certainty, cultivators could sell their catfish harvests with confidence.

The Breeding and Rearing Business provided guidance to partnered catfish cultivators throughout the catfish raising process until harvest, ensuring that the quality of the catfish harvest was in accordance with the mutual agreement. Given this guidance, crop failure could be reduced, which was usually caused by changing weather and, if not handled quickly, can result in crop failure. The Breeding and Rearing Business directly purchases catfish cultivator yielded at a mutually agreed-upon price of Rp. 17,000/kg.

Cultivators who participated in the Breeding and Rearing Business Partnership System ought to have ponds and manpower. Meanwhile, the Breeding and Rearing Businesses provided manufacturing facilities, transportation costs, guidance and market certainty guarantees. According to the theory of existing partnership patterns in Indonesia, the partnership pattern between catfish cultivators and the Breeding and Rearing Business fell under the category of agribusiness operational cooperation (KOA). The operational cooperation partnership (KOA) pattern included the following features: The partner organization provided land, facilities and labor. Meanwhile, partner companies provided costs, capital, management and production facility procurement to cultivate an agricultural commodity. Partner companies also acted as market guarantors by increasing the added value of the product through processing and packaging [6].

Feasibility of Catfish Farming Business

Taking into account the production costs for one period of maintenance, each cultivator in a catfish cultivation business partnered with the Breeding and Rearing Business can achieve a high level of income. The catfish cultivation business was expected to generate a lot of money. Large revenues, however, did not always imply high efficiency, because large revenues could be obtained by utilizing excess production costs.

Catfish cultivation activities were currently always linked to the production process. A cultivation activity's production process undoubtedly involved costs. The cost in question was the production cost. Production costs, according to Hariyati [7], are the amount of compensation received by the owners of the factors of production used in the production process. The lower the production costs incurred, the greater the income received; however, inappropriate cost allocation also affects cultivators' results because it affected the output or results that would be obtained. 

Each cultivator's production cost varies depending on the scale of production cultivated, the amount of feed used and environmental conditions. The use of production costs ought to be considered so that the allocation was not excessive or insufficient and if it was excessive, it would have an unfavorable impact on the income received. As a result, an analysis is required to determine whether or not the use of these costs is efficient.

Variable costs in catfish cultivation showed that the cost of seeds spent in one period of catfish cultivation was an average of Rp. 3,656,250. The catfish seeds used were 46mm - 57mm in size and cost IDR 225/head. Seedlings of this size had a rearing period ranging from 2 months to 2.5 months with high adaptability, allowing the mortality rate to be reduced. In general, the Breeding and Rearing Business tought partnered cultivators how to spread catfish seeds at a rate of 200-400/m². 

The cost of feed was one of the variable costs that necessitates a significant cost allocation; the cost of feed incurred by cultivators who partner with the Breeding and Rearing Businesses was Rp. 17,990,000. The feed costs were made up of pelleted feed and rejected chicken eggs. The feed used at ages 0-1 month was high in protein, whereas the feed used at ages 1-2.5 months was moderate in protein. Catfish should be fed twice a day, preferably in the morning and evening. Cultivators provided additional feed in the form of rejected chicken eggs in addition to pelleted feed, but special handling was required, as eggs ought to be cooked first. Catfish aged 1-2.5 months were given additional feed in the form of eggs. Providing additional feed could help reduce production costs in catfish cultivation efforts, reducing cost overruns. 

Booster vitamins were the most expensive drugs in catfish cultivation. The average cost of purchasing booster vitamins during one period of growing catfish cultivation was Rp. 375,000.

The average cost of labor required in one period was Rp. 2,700,000. Labor in the family was used in the catfish cultivation process. Cleaning ponds and sorting catfish were examples of the work done. Pond cleaning and catfish sorting should ideally be done twice during one rearing cultivation period, but it was also necessary to assess the pond's situation and condition. Meanwhile, the electricity costs incurred in one period range from Rp. 525,000 on average.

Fixed costs in this study included depreciation costs on investment costs such as equipment used in the process of cultivating catfish cultivation and land taxes. The equipment costs included pool depreciation, jet pump depreciation or water machines, tarpaulin depreciation, sorting bucket depreciation, plastic bucket depreciation and netting depreciation. Depreciation costs incurred during a single period of catfish cultivation, with an average depreciation cost of Rp. 754,972 assuming a 10% annual depreciation. Other fixed costs included land tax, which was issued in one period of catfish cultivation at a rate of Rp. 7,875.

According to the table above, the total fixed and variable costs in one catfish period in collaboration with the Breeding and Rearing Businesses averaged Rp. 26,009,097. And the receipt of catfish cultivation each period, with an average revenue of Rp. 35,275,000 per period. With an average monthly income of Rp. 9,265,903. While the average yield per catfish cultivation period was 2,075 kg/period. Catfish sells for around $17,000 per kilogram. According to the table's description, the total costs incurred by cultivators in catfish cultivation activities are classified as efficient. Where the B/C ratio produced an average of 1.35. Based on the decision-making criteria in data analysis using B/C Ratio analysis, the results obtained are B/C Ratio>1, indicating that raising catfish in collaboration with Breeding and Rearing Businesses is profitable and feasible. The value of the B/C ratio of 1.35 indicates that the value of the benefits obtained from catfish cultivation is 1.35 times the value of the costs incurred at a 10% interest rate. As a result, it is possible to conclude that growing catfish farming by partnering with Breeding and Rearing Businesses is profitable and feasible to cultivate. This is consistent with Wajdi et al. [8], research on the Development of a Catfish Cultivation Business in Karanggeneng Village, Karanggeneng District, Lamongan Regency, which calculated a Benefit-Cost Ratio (BCR) of 1.95, which means that the value of the benefits derived from this business is equal to 1.95 times the value of the costs incurred at a 12% interest rate. Catfish farming in Karanggeneng Village, Lamongan Regency, is feasible with a BCR value greater than one.

• An agribusiness operational partnership (KOA) pattern system is used in the partnership pattern between catfish cultivators and the Breeding and Rearing Business in Bingkulu Village, Tanah Laut Regency, South Kalimantan Province. Whereas cultivators provide ponds and labor, Breeding and Rearing Businesses provide production facilities such as catfish seeds, pellet feed and rejected chicken eggs, as well as vitamins. Additionally, the Breeding and Rearing Businesses bear transportation costs and participate in providing technical guidance during the rearing cultivation process, as well as providing cultivators with market certainty guarantees

• The feasibility of the catfish cultivation business is already feasible or profitable with a B/C value of 1.35, implying that the value of the benefits obtained in the catfish cultivation business is 1.35 times the value of the costs incurred at a 10% interest rate

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