A grain-processing company is considering purchasing a catfish farm in

Question

A grain-processing company is considering purchasing a catfish farm in an attempt to reduce waste by using the by-products of its grain processing as fish food. Catfish whose diet includes grain by-products have been found to reach marketable size in five months, and restaurants have expressed interest in having a reliable source for catfish.

The answer to which of the following questions is LEAST directly relevant to the grain-processing company’s consideration of whether fish farming is a preferable alternative to discarding grain byproducts?

(A) How does the cost of discarding grain by-products compare to the operating costs of a fish farm?

(B) How many pounds of catfish are served by restaurants locally and nationally each year?

(C) Are there government regulations that apply to the production and transportation of fish?

(D) Do catfish require nutrients not supplied by grain by-products?

(E) In how many months do wild catfish reach marketable size?

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peaky · Answer

can anybody explain why opt c is not the answer?

nishantj1996 · Answer

(A) How does the cost of discarding grain by-products compare to the operating costs of a fish farm? - This is relevant for costing purposes

(B) How many pounds of catfish are served by restaurants locally and nationally each year? - this is important for me to figure out what my market demand is going to look like

(C) Are there government regulations that apply to the production and transportation of fish? - We can safely assume that government regulations that apply to fish in general would also apply to catfish and therefore will impact my production & transportation processes and their associated costs

(D) Do catfish require nutrients not supplied by grain by-products? - This will need me to supply the catfish with additional nutrients other than my grain by-products

(E) In how many months do wild catfish reach marketable size? - Wild is the key word here. I’m only concerned with bred catfish and not wild ones. This is the right choice

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LeopardLiu · Answer

I read all the way down and see a wild catfish shows up for the first time in Option E. I'm thinking:"You gotta be kidding me..."

Bunuel · Answer

KAPLAN OFFICIAL EXPLANATION:

STEP 1: IDENTIFY THE QUESTION TYPE 
This is an Evaluation question with a twist: you need to find the one question whose answer would not help you decide whether the grainprocessing company should discard its grain by-products or recycle those products to feed catfish.

STEP 2: UNTANGLE THE STIMULUS 
One piece of evidence for success of the plan is that fish with grain byproducts in their diets reach marketable size; this establishes that catfish eat the by-products and grow large enough to be sold. Another piece of evidence is that restaurants want a steady supply of catfish.

STEP 3: PREDICT THE ANSWER 
These facts are both promising, but do they make operating a fish farm a better choice than just throwing away the by-products? As with any question that asks you to evaluate a plan, consider other factors that might influence whether the plan is the better choice or feasible at all.

STEP 4: EVALUATE THE CHOICES 
 (E) is the correct answer  because the time it takes for catfish to mature in the wild is irrelevant to whether the company should farm them. Even if catfish mature much more quickly in the wild, they may be difficult to harvest, expensive to transport, or not found in sufficient numbers. Even if they mature much more slowly, they may be less prone to disease and thus be a more reliable supply, or they may taste better. An answer to this question about wild catfish does not help evaluate the plan concerning farmed catfish. With (A), if the costs of operating the fish farm were less than the costs of discarding the by-products, the plan would be more attractive. (B) is an important question that speaks to how much fish the company could sell to earn revenue and offset the costs of running the farm. An answer to (C) would provide information about regulations that could increase the costs and reduce the feasibility of fish farming. Although the author says that some fish fed with grain by-products grow up, it doesn’t say their entire diet is grain by-products. Thus, an answer to (D) would provide information about whether the grain company would need to buy other foods or supplements, making the project more expensive.

VerbalBot · Answer

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A grain-processing company is considering purchasing a catfish farm in

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A grain-processing company is considering purchasing a catfish farm in

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