6 Factors to Consider before Growing Tilapia Fish for Profit
Every tilapia farmer will surely want to know exactly how to raise tilapia fish successfully even on a commercial level, therefore, here are 6 major factors you need to consider before growing tilapia to enhance maximum profits:
1. Take a quick inventory of your motives and readiness
Why do you want to raise tilapia fishes?
Determine what your goal is. Are you looking to grow fish to feed your family?
If you grow enough fish, will you barter them with your neighbors for other goods or services? Do you want to sell them at a local farmers’ market? Do you want to learn tilapia aquafarming (aqua farming) on a small scale before venturing into a larger, commercial enterprise?
What resources do you have?
Do you have a source of water available to you? For example, a farm pond or stream on your property.
Don’t worry if you don’t have a natural water source available. Tilapia are freshwater fish and have been grown successfully in conditioned tap water.
Do you have materials available that you can use as part of your farming efforts? You don’t need the fortune to start growing tilapia, but you most likely will need a modest budget to purchase fish and some other items.
Look at ways to use the resources you have at hand. For example, a plastic child’s swimming pool may be the perfect “tank” to hold your first crop of fish.
Can you learn fish rearing techniques? Tilapia are easy to grow, but it will take some education on your part to learn about how to raise these fish successfully.
If your assessment confirms that raising tilapia is for you, then continue to the following steps.
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2. Develop a plan and budget
Take the time to develop a plan for how you will raise your tilapia. This does not have to be a formal plan or even written down, but you do need to think about the following items:
How will you learn about culturing tilapia? For example, will you purchase a book, contact your state’s extension agent, use online resources, or attend a course on tilapia culture.
What is your budget?
The amount of money you have available for your project will have a bearing on whether you purchase materials new or used, or whether you try to improvise using materials you already have.
Do you need to purchase items, such as a tank, biofilter, aerator, nets, feed, or other equipment? If so, where will you get them?
How will you maintain your fish?
What will you feed them and when? How will you maintain the proper levels of dissolved oxygen, carbon dioxide, pH, and nitrogen compounds present in water? How will you keep these warm-water fish at the proper temperature? Tilapia can withstand a range of environmental conditions, but you do need to try to optimize their growing conditions for the best results.
Do you intend to breed fish so that you can avoid having to purchase fry or fingerlings? If so, what type of hatchery system will you use?
What will you do when fish are ready to harvest? Do you intend to use them for your household food or sell them to local markets?
3. Set up your tilapia system
Tilapia can be grown successfully in a variety of environments, including ponds, cages, raceways, and tanks. Urban farmers have even reported growing them in trash cans.
Growing fish in a pond is perhaps the simplest method. You may even be able to allow the fish to feed on the natural food available in the pond
If you are using a tank or cage, you will need to purchase the materials needed to set up these systems. If you are using tanks, especially where the water is not being recirculated, you may need to condition the water for a few days before introducing your fish.
So, set up your culture environment. It is probably best to start small and evolve into a larger system, as your experience grows.
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4. Get fish to start your farm
Now that you have your culture environment ready to go, it is time to introduce fish into your system to grow out. Typically, you will purchase tilapia fingerlings (juvenile fish in a range of 0.75″ to 2.0″). Find a reputable dealer to purchase your fish from.
After you receive your fingerlings, you may need to acclimatize your fingerlings slowly to the temperature, pH, and general water conditions of the grow-out environment. Introduce your new crop of fish into the grow-out environment and begin farming.
Note: You may also purchase fry (fish less than 0.75″), but they require more attention for their grow-out.
5. Grow your fish to harvestable size
During the grow-out phase, you need to feed your fish and maintain favorable environmental conditions.
The best growth occurs when water chemistry is maintained within an optimal range. For tilapia, the recommended water chemistry values are as follows:
Temperature: 80-100°F, 85°F is optimal
(Note: tilapia will slow their eating at 75°F, will become weak at 60°F, and die at 50°F)
Dissolved Oxygen: 5-7 ppm (parts per million)
PH: 7-7.5
Free Ammonia (not total ammonia): optimal=0, 2ppm will kill, 1ppm will slow growth.
Nitrite: 0.3 mg/l or less
Nitrate: 200-300 ppm
CO2: 20 mg/l or less
Chlorine: 0
Just like growing a traditional vegetable garden requires proper care and maintenance, you will need to watch over your “aquacrop” to promote optimal growth. Under proper growth conditions, tilapia fingerlings will reach harvestable size in 8 months.
In addition to raising your fish for food, you may want to set aside some of your adult fish as breeders to produce fry and fingerlings to “reseed” your fish crop for another harvest. This is truly the way to make your tilapia farm self-sustaining.
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6. Harvest your fish
After the grow-out phase, your fish is ready for harvesting and you can start to enjoy the fruits of your labors. Find some interesting new tilapia recipes and prepare some healthy, tasty meals for your family to enjoy.
If you intend to sell your fish, then initiate your tilapia marketing and sales program.
