The Three (3) Stages in Tilapia Fish Farming Business

October 5, 2023 Agric4Profits

Tilapia are warm water, hardy fish. That is why it is easy to grow. Besides, you can easily farm them in any type of fish culture system. That makes it one of the best small-scale aquacultures from large commercial production to small backyard ponds.

There are three (3) stages in the tilapia farming timeline; the hatching stage (spawning), rearing stage (grow-out), and harvesting stage (processing) as discussed in detail below.

1. The Hatching stage (spawning)

This stage includes delicate jobs such as caring for breeding colonies, encouraging or inducing spawning, egg extraction or nursery isolation, tilapia fry care, and raising the fry to fingerling size; ultimately grading the fingerlings for their rate of growth before delivering them to the grow-out facility.

Each of these jobs has several individual steps and techniques that are unique to the operation of a tilapia hatchery.

2. Rearing stage (grow-out)

Rearing, or grow-out, is the part of tilapia farming that picks up after the hatchery has raised them to fingerling size.

At this stage, the tilapia farmer’s goal is to raise the tilapia to harvest size quickly, economically, and in good health.

Tasks include testing, sorting, weighing, and several maintenance jobs. These tasks are the subject of this guide.

3. Harvesting stage (processing)

Harvesting, or processing, involves selecting tilapia, moving them to a finishing pond, killing them humanely in a way that respects what they are providing, and then removing their filets.

Many of these jobs can be skipped by the farmer and passed on to the person preparing the tilapia. The equipment used for harvesting has nothing to do with the rearing facilities and doesn’t incorporate any of the hatchery equipment.