Tilapia: Food fish of the 21st century

Tilapia is often touted as the single most important aquaculture product in the 21st century. In fact, Dr. Kevin Fitzsimmons, president of the World Aquaculture Society, called tilapia as the "food fish of the 21st century."

Tilapia has been around since biblical times. Most of them were raised before in Africa, but accidental and deliberate introductions of tilapia into freshwater lakes made them feasible to be raised in tropical climate such as Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Malaysia.

"Historically, the introduction of the first tilapia species, the Mozambique tilapia, in the Philippines in 1950 was initially not well-accepted by the industry because of the lack of appropriate culture techniques," reports Dr. Rafael D. Guerrero III, the executive director of the Laguna-based Philippine Council for Aquaculture and Marine Research and Development (PCAMRD).

"Growth of the fish in ponds was stunted with too much breeding and overpopulation. The small size and dark color of the fish did not also appeal to local consumers," he added.

The coming of the Nile tilapia in the 1970s improved the acceptance of tilapia in the country because of its lighter color and faster growth compared to the Mozambique tilapia.

Considered the "aquatic chicken," the tilapia has good attributes that make it suitable for aquaculture. "It matures early, breeds readily and is a hardy fish," Dr. Guerrero said.

The Philippines was the world leader in tilapia production from aquaculture in 1986.

"Our country produced 135,996 metric tons of tilapia in 2003 and was second to China in world production," Dr. Guerrero said.

Pampanga is considered the "tilapia capital" of the Philippines. Statistics have shown that Central Luzon produced 50% of the total tilapia production in the country in the last five years. In 2003, Pampanga produced 65,000 metric tons of tilapia.

"You are the center of food production in the region and this is one of the reasons why we want to empower people in the countryside," said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in her recent visit to the province.

Most of the tilapia raised in the Philippines are consumed locally. Unknown to many, there is a growing international market demand for tilapia as a food fish.

"In the United States, tilapia has shown the biggest gains in popularity among seafood, and this trend is expected to continue as consumption is projected to increase from 1.5 million tons in 2003 to 2.5 million tons by 2010," the Journal of the American Dietetic Association disclosed.

Like Americans, Europeans are also fond of tilapia since they consider it as "white meat," a health food low in cholesterol and fat. Also, chefs have a preference for tilapia's firm meat.

Aside from its large demand in the world market, tilapia also commands a high price. In the United States, for instance, the typical retail price for whole live tilapia is from US$4-10 per kilo, while fresh tilapia fillet is being sold at US$8-10 per kilo.

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Tilapia: Food fish of the 21st century