Tilapia Aquaculture

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Tilapia Aquaculture An Overview Harvest,
Processing, Marketing in US and Mexico

• Kevin Fitzsimmons University of Arizona,
  Professor
• World Aquaculture Society, Immediate
  Past-President
• American Tilapia Association, Sec./Tres.
• Pablo Gonzalez Alanis
• Universidad Autonoma de Tamaulipas, Professor
• World Aquaculture Society, Student Liaison
• Program Coordinator, Aquaculture TIES
• Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico
• 1ero Dec, 2005

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Tilapia aquaculture

• Second most important farmed fish after the carps
• Most widely grown of any farmed fish
• In 2003 became the eighth most popular seafood in
  the US
• In 2004 moved up to sixth most popular seafood in
  the US

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Pre-processing steps

• Hatchery and Growout
• Check for off-flavor
• Harvest techniques
• Depuration
• Transport to processor

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Quality Control begins on the Farm

• Farmer must remember that many actions during
  growout can affect final product quality and
  marketing
• For example some markets will not accept any
  hormone used on fish.
• So sex-reversed fish may not be sold to these
  customers
• Organic markets have whole set of requirements

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Important on-farm management issues affecting
markets

• Sex-reversal (yes or no)
• Feed supply (lowest cost, highest quality,
  organic)
• Algae control to avoid off-flavor
• In salt water, control parasites that might scar
  skin or impact fillet
• Bird control (environmental issue, loss of
  stocks, vector for parasites and disease)

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Decisions before harvest

• Who will buy the fish?
• Who will harvest the fish?
• Is flavor of fish acceptable?
• Testing by cooking fillet in paper bag in
  microwave oven. Trained taster needed.
• Will depuration be needed? (at farm or processing
  plant)
• How many days and who will test?
• Fish should be transported live to processing
  site!

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Transport to processing plant

• Best to transport live
• May want to add salt to reduce stress and
  maintain quality

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Processing steps

• Processing line
• Bleeding / chilling stage
• Scale removal
• Deheading
• Evisceration
• Fillet
• Skinning
• Trimming

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Processing steps

• Processing line
• Hand cutting, machine cutting, or mix
• Most plants use a mixture of machine and hand
• Need to make these basic decisions before
  starting plant.
• Decide when and how to kill fish. (Chill,
  electric shock, bleeding or cutting head)
• Before or after bleeding.
• Bleed better before chilling.
• Stay more fresh with faster chilling
• Some prefer to kill before bleeding

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Processing steps

• Scale removal
• Most processors use rotating drum de-scalers
• Deheading
• Most use food grade band saw
• Some still cut by hand
• Handlers should use chain mail gloves

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Evisceration, by hand or vacuum

• Hand evisceration less investment, no equipment
  to malfunction or maintain
• Vacuum less labor, waste is concentrated in
  collection tank, less mess on line

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Removal of skin, by hand or machine
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Skinners

• Most plants use automated skinning
• Most markets are requiring deep skinning,
  leaving more flesh on the skin

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Removal of pin bones and trimming

• Fillets have small bones that must be removed for
  international markets
• Buyers are requesting better trim of margins of
  fillets for more consistent appearance

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Treatments, value-addition and packaging

• Ozonated water baths
• Carbon dioxide and Liquid Smoke
• Freezing
• Packaging
• Multi-function machines
• By-products

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Processing - bacterial testing

• Samples should be checked for bacterial
  contamination
• Follow HACCP procedures and EU guidelines
• Many plants are using ozone dips to reduce
  surface bacteria

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Processing - fillet line
Blow drying fillets Application of
either liquid smoke or some other kind of
preservative.
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Carbon monoxide(also called liquid smoke)

• CO infuses into fillet and reacts with myoglobin
• Fillet maintains fresh appearance for longer
  period

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Carbon monoxide

• Most plants in China appear to use carbon
  monoxide
• Some gas in chambers others infuse in bags before
  freezing

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Individual bags for frozen fillets
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Vacuum sealing
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Many forms of packaging
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IQF Fillets in re-sealable packages
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New product forms
Sashimi grade tilapia
Smoked tilapia
Hickory Smoked
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Review-Rapid advances in processing and quality
assurance steps

• Depuration stage
• Bleeding step
• Deep skinning
• Additional trimming
• Ozone dips
• Improved packaging
• Value added product forms
• Faster delivery

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Mexico - 100,000 - 110,000 mt
Tilapia-shrimp farm in Sonora
Pond Tilapia farm in Tamaulipas
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Mexican Consumption of Tilapia

• 110,000,000 kg one kg/per capita/year
• US consumption 0.3 kg/capita/year
• Most Mexican consumption is domestic, few imports
  from China

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Tilapia production in Mexico

• Production in most states of Mexico
• Most production in southern states
• Veracruz has greatest production
• Intensive in north, lake ranching in south
• Repopulation of reservoirs
• Problem with FAO definition of aquaculture
• Tilapia-shrimp polyculture in seawater

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Markets in Mexico
Raceway system

• Strong domestic markets on ice, fillets in
  grocery stores
• All domestic consumption Exports are minimal.

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Live markets in Mexico

• Live markets ( 30 pesos/kg)
• Established live markets in Guadalajara and
  Mexico City
• Need to develop live markets in other cities
  (Asians are first customers)
• May need to provide live tanks to retailers
  (allows you to exclude competitors)

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Fresh product markets in Mexico

• Regional and local markets (15-20 pesos/kg)
• Wide recognition across Mexico
• 110,000 MT annual consumption
• Virtually zero exports, this is a prime
  opportunity

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Frozen product markets in Mexico

• Strong markets (10-15 pesos/kg)
• Established channels for processing and
  distribution
• Problem with frozen imports from China
• Should be a temporary problem as costs rise in
  China and transportation costs increase
• (Of course future change in costs in China does
  not help tilapia farmer in Mexico today)

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Global Tilapia Sales

• For year 2000
• US 1,706,538,200 (FAO Fisheries Circular
  No. 886)
• 2005 sales gt 3,000,000,000
• 2010 sales gt 5,000,000,000

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Top Ten Seafoods (U.S.)per capita (lbs)
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US Tilapia Aquaculture

• 9,200 mt per year (20,000,000 lbs)
• California is largest producer
• ID, NC, FL, TX, AZ, NY,PA, MA are also
  significant producers
• Virtually all tilapia in US for live sales
• Asian groceries and restaurants are primary
  market outlets

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Nutritional quality contributes to popularity

• USDA has completed a complete highly technical
  nutritional analysis. Now is preparing
  nutritional report on tilapia for the general
  public
• New USDA Pyramid guidelines further support
  frequent fish consumption

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Nutritional quality of tilapia contributes to
popularity

• Moderate in PUFAs 0.387 g/100g raw
• 0.600 g/100g cooked
• Moderate omega 3 FAs 0.141 g/100g raw
• 0.220 g/100g cooked
• Source USDA- ARS Lab
• Low in mercury Tilapia 0.01 ppm
• Shark 0.99 ppm
• Source FDA
• http//www.cfsan.fda.gov/frf/sea-mehg.html

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US market development

• The LAND opens at EPCOT in 1983 features
  tilapia culture and on menu in the Good Turn
  Restaurant
• Farms in ID, CA, FL AZ begin sales to Asian
  stores and restaurants
• Farms in Colombia, Costa Rica, Jamaica Taiwan,
  and Indonesia begin imports

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Market evolution in US

• Ethnic buyers (Asians, Latino African)
• Live markets
• Up-scale restaurants
• Casual dining
• Club stores and hypermarkets
• Local groceries

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US Consumption of tilapia from domestic and
imported sources
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US Tilapia consumption412,148,000 lbs (187,000
mt) of live weight-2003504,716,000 lbs (229,000
mt) of live weight-2004
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19,480 mt fresh fillets, 36,160 mt frozen
fillets, 57,2990 mt whole frozen (2004)
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174,215,165 (2002) 241,205,610 (2003)
297,413,000 (2004) 352,305,388 (est 2005)
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US Sales of tilapia

• Imports in 2004 were 297,413,261
• US production of 40,000,000 at farm
• 2004 Total US tilapia sales were over
  337,000,000
• 2005 Sales estimate
• 176,152,694 (Jan-June imports)
  2352,305,388 40,000,000 392,000,000

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Current US Market Trends

• Increase in demand for all forms of tilapia
• Demand increase will be greatest for fresh
  fillets
• Demand increase will be smallest for live tilapia

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Tilapia the Green farmed fish

• Herbivore / omnivore, low trophic level feeder
• Algae, bacteria, and detritus are important food
  sources
• Prepared feeds are mostly grains and ag
  by-products
• Can be reared in high densities, with low water
  exchange
• Disease resistant and tolerant of poor water
  quality. Anti-biotics and chemicals are rarely
  used.

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The environmental fish

• Promoted by aid agencies and NGOs
• Dr. M. Gupta wins World Food Prize for promotion
  of tilapia aquaculture, June 10, 2005
• Does not prey on other species
• Often used in integrated farming systems
• Frequently reared in reservoirs and irrigation
  systems with effluents used for irrigation,
  reducing fertilizer applications

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Tilapia Market Trends

• Prices have been constant or trending down for
  several years, will not increase with inflation

/kg
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Global aquaculture production of tilapia
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Advertising at all levels
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Advertising
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Cooking contests and gastronomic festivals
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Tilapia by-products

• Leather goods from skins
• Pharmaceuticals from skins
• Formed fish products
• Fertilizer
• Fish meal

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Tilapia Leather
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Flowers made from Tilapia scales
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Future global tilapia production