TILAPIA AQUACULTURE IN MEXICO - College of · PDF file · 2003-02-07are often built to store irrigation water on farm and can be used for tilapia production. ... In some cases the

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ABSTRACT

Mexico produces more tilapia than any othercountry in the Americas, 94,279 t in 1996. Tilapiaare cultured under extensive and intensive methodsand are captured from reservoirs stocked with fin-gerlings. There are highly developed internal mar-kets and few fish are exported. Culture methods havebecome more intensive in recent years, with im-proved feeds, development of cage and raceway cul-ture, genetic manipulations and more skilledproducers. The government has begun a project todevelop 3 tilapia parks. These parks will be research,education and demonstration sites as well as majorproduction locations. As additional technology is ap-plied, Mexico’s tilapia production will expand.Mexico, with its large domestic demand, proximityto US markets, and enormous water resources fortilapia culture, will soon be a major factor in theinternational trade in tilapia.

INTRODUCTION

During the 1990s Mexico has become one ofthe world’s major producers and consumers of tila-pia. In 1987, national production was 27,765 t oftilapia, and by 1996 Mexico produced 94,279 t (Fig-ure 1). The amount of tilapia derived from aquacul-ture operations in 1996 was 79,154 t. Many fishreported for aquaculture were derived from finger-lings released into reservoirs in ranching operations.Tilapia represents the third largest seafood product(by weight) of Mexico, after sardines and tuna, andthe 4th most valuable, after shrimp, tuna, and octo-pus (Table 1). Virtually all production was consumeddomestically. The industry is widely diversified interms of geography, with production reported for allbut 4 states, and methods of production, rangingfrom extensive stocking and recapture to super-in-tensive controlled environment culture. Aquaculture

of tilapia may be a fairly recent phenomenon butfish farming is not new to Mexico. In pre-Hispanictimes fish were maintained for “ritual and religious”purposes (Aguilera Hernández and Noriega Curtis1991a). In 1883 Esteban Cházari wrote the first texton fish culture in Mexico (Piscicultura en AguaDulce). Many species are now raised domesticallyand there is a well developed aquaculture infrastruc-ture.

Several tilapia species were introduced toMexico in the 1960s and 1970s. O. mossambicusand O. aureus were first introduced in 1964 (Pullinet al. 1997), O. niloticus and O. urolepis hornorumin 1978 (Pullin et al. 1997), and Tilapia zillii and atleast one red hybrid sometime in between. Severaladditional populations of each of these species havebeen brought into Mexico. Introductions are the re-sult of privately sponsored imports as well as stateand federal fisheries programs. Tilapia are now foundin every state in Mexico and are established in thewild across much of the country. Tilapia are widelyrecognized as an important food fish.

In the early years after introduction, tilapia werereferred to as mojarra or mojarra africana. This wasespecially true of the O. mossambicus. The namemojarra is still encountered in some instances, buttilapia is now recognized in much of the country asthe common name. O. mossambicus are no longerthe major culture species of tilapia in Mexico. O.aureus are the most common tilapia in the south ofthe country and in reservoir fisheries. O. niloticusand red strains are the most widely cultured speciesin intensive operations, which occur mainly in thenorthern states. Much of the public is aware of tila-pia and the fish can be found in grocery stores inmany regions. The fish are usually sold fresh wholeon ice, but some stores are now beginning to sellthem headed and gutted and on rare occasions as

TILAPIA AQUACULTURE IN MEXICO

Kevin FitzsimmonsDepartment of Soil, Water and Environmental Science

University of ArizonaTucson, Arizona 85706

United States

Fitzsimmons K. 2000. Tilapia aquaculture in Mexico. Pages 171–183 in B.A. Costa-Pierce and J.E. Rakocy, eds. Tilapia Aquaculturein the Americas, Vol. 2. The World Aquaculture Society, Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States.

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packaged fresh fillets. The Mexican government aswell as most state governments are committed tosupporting the growth of aquaculture as a replace-ment for over-fished wild stocks and as a techno-logical innovation to make rural agriculture moreproductive and lucrative. With the abundant waterresources and proximity to US markets, furthergrowth of small and industrial scale tilapia cultureis anticipated in Mexico.

DISTRIBUTION

Mexico is a large country with extensive fresh-water and marine resources (Figure 2). Veracruz wasthe leading tilapia producer state with 16,804 t (Table2). The values in Table 2 represent only the produc-tion from aquaculture operations. The rest of thenational production comes from capture fisheries inreservoirs. The national tilapia aquaculture figuressometimes include those captured fish because the

lakes are stocked with fry and fingerlings from stateand federal hatcheries. It is not known what the con-tribution of the hatchery stocks are to the overallcatch. Some sources claim that stocked fish are criti-cal while others feel that the established populationsin the reservoirs are providing all the recruitmentneeded. This discrepancy shows up in the FAO sta-tistics, which do not recognize those fish as aquac-ulture products.

Types of Culture

Small Pond Culture–Cultivo en EstanquesRusticos

The earliest form of tilapia culture in Mexicowas conducted in small ponds under extensive cul-ture conditions. Early introductions were related tostate programs which were devoted to providing fryand fingerlings to subsistence farmers who neededthe fish production to increase protein intake in theirdiets. There were additional projects, often sup-ported by missionary and religious organizations,that supported small hatcheries supplying juvenilefish to ejidos (communal farms), social cooperatives,orphanages and church groups.

Extensive production in small ponds is still prac-ticed widely throughout the country. State and Fed-eral hatcheries often provide fry to individualfarmers and to cooperative groups at subsidizedprices. Hatcheries produce young fish and eithermake them available for pick up by producers, or,in some cases, deliver them to the farmers. Fish aresometimes reared only on the productivity of the

Production (t)

Figure 1. Tilapia production in Mexico.

Table 1. Production and value of fishery products ofMexico, 1996. Derived from SEMARNAP, FisheriesStatistics (1996).

Weight Value

Product (t) (pesos x 000)

Sardines 344,403 115,927

Tunas 129,342 1,171,839

Tilapias 94,279 393,038

Shrimp 61,235 2,254,636

Octopus 29,450 470,317

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

80,000

90,000

100,000

1985 1986 1987 1988 1994 1995

Year

Wild Catch

Aquaculture

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Fitzsimmons

pond ecosystem. In other cases the farmer fertilizesthe pond with organic or chemical fertilizers. Thereare several publications available (Morales 1974;Porras Diaz 1990; Aguilera Hernández and NoriegaCurtis 1991a,b) that detail the procedures that arefollowed.

Cultivation of tilapia in rice fields and in con-junction with chicken and pig production has beentested at the Granja de Policultivo de Tezontepec inHidalgo (Martinez Torres and Abrego Ayala 1991).Neither of these methods is widespread yet inMexico, but there is considerable potential. Oneform of integration that has become common is pro-duction of tilapia in irrigation water. Small pondsare often built to store irrigation water on farm andcan be used for tilapia production. A variation is torear fish in the drainage water from an irrigated field.This practice is less appealing as the fields may leachfertilizers and pesticides that could accumulate inthe fish.

Another type of small pond culture that is prac-ticed in the southern state of Oaxaca is called themicrocuenca , or small watershed system. Amicrocuenca is a small reservoir that forms when adam is built in an eroded watershed. The primaryreason for the reservoir is to control downstream

flooding and to capture sediments that otherwisewould flow downstream. The reservoir can bestocked with tilapia or other fish, normally from astate hatchery. The fish are fed a diet based on localingredients or the reservoir may receive organic fer-tilizers to increase productivity. The stored water isthen used for local irrigation of grains, beans or veg-etables. In some cases the water with fish effluent isused to irrigate small tree nurseries. The trees areused to reforest areas in the upper watershed. Thepond sediments can also be removed for use oncrops.

Stocking in Reservoirs–Presas

A practice that contributes significantly to tila-pia production throughout Mexico is stocking andharvest from reservoirs. In the 1960s and 70s a num-ber of major dams were built creating multi-purposereservoirs. In addition to providing electrical power,irrigation water, potable water and flood control, thereservoirs proved to be valuable as inland fisheriesresources. There was spotty documentation of thenative fish fauna in most of the areas inundated bythe dams. Rather than wait to see if any of the na-tive fish survived, tilapia were introduced in an ef-fort to quickly improve the fishery of the newreservoirs. Several of the lakes even had hatcheriesbuilt as a part of the overall construction plan.

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108E 102E 96E

108E 102E 96E 90E

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Figure 2. Tilapia production areas in Mexico.

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Tilapia Aquaculture in Mexico

These projects were envisioned as “ranching”operations in which hatchery reared juveniles wouldbe stocked in the lake and allowed to grow. Later,resettled families would harvest the fish and con-sume them directly, sell them locally or market themto the nearest municipality. Of course the tilapiaquickly became established in the reservoirs andbegan reproducing on their own. The harvest of thefish has been quite successful and these reservoirsnow provide many of the tilapia available in themarkets. Tilapia coming from the reservoirs are usu-ally included in the aquaculture statistics becausethere are still active stocking programs adding ju-venile tilapia. Fishermen report that their yield de-creases if stocking is suspended, although thereseems to be little if any data to support that claim.

Cage and Pen Culture–Jaulas and Corrales

Jaulas are floating cages that do not normallytouch the bottom of the body of water in which thecages are situated. Corrales are net pens that usestaked sides and then allow the bottom net to rest onthe bottom or forsake a bottom net altogether. Oneinteresting variation on the corrals is the use ofencierros (confinements), which consist of woodenstructures that enclose portions of a lagoon. Thosestructures are used to culture tilapia most commonlyin the Alvarado lagoon system just south of the cityof Veracruz. The corrales seem to be losing popu-larity and are being replaced with floating cages indeeper or flowing water.

Two types of jaulas are used in Mexico. Onetype, commonly utilized by low income socialgroups or individuals, is constructed out of inexpen-sive local materials (FONDEPESCA 1981) (Figure3). The other type used in more intensive produc-tion systems incorporate floating docks, custom-made nets and other materials specially made fornet pen culture (Figure 4). Cages are important forgrowers who wish to control reproduction in theirsystems. Cage culture greatly reduces fertilizationand recovery of eggs by the spawners if the eggsfall through the net mesh. Harvest from cages is alsoless complicated than recovering fish from a larger,open body of water. Most cage operations use float-ing or slow sinking pelleted feed. Most of the reser-voirs where these cages are placed have been filledwithin the last 20 years and are used for irrigation.Eutrophication of reservoir waters or fouling belowthe cages has not become an issue. Since tilapia fe-ces often float and break up readily, fouling belowcages is not a problem. However, eutrophication maybecome a problem if irrigators do not take sufficientquantities.

Raceways–Canales de Flujo Rapido

The author is not aware of any raceways thatwere constructed specifically with tilapia culture inmind. One hatchery/demonstration farm nearAbasolo, Tamaulipas constructed a series of race-ways that were designed for catfish studies but noware stocked with tilapia. The raceways were built ina series of stair steps with 17 reuses of the water(Figure 5). The design was based loosely on a sys-tem developed for catfish by Leo Ray of Idaho. Thevertical drops are sufficient to replace oxygen in theraceways, but there is no mechanism to removeammonia from the water. That metabolite accumu-lates in the water and reduces growth of the tilapia.The managers of the demonstration farm leave sec-tions of raceways open to allow for solids settling

Table 2. 1996 Tilapia aquaculture production inMexico. Derived from SEMARNAP, FisheriesStatistics (1996).

Production

State (t)

Aguacalientes 50

Baja California –

Baja California Sur –

Campeche 250

Chiapas 4,055

Chihuahua 124

Coahuila 10

Colima 685

Durango 602

Guanajuato 1,436

Guerrero 2,906

Hidalgo 646

Jalisco 4,128

Mexico 400

Michoacan 15,363

Morelos 1,085

Nayarit 889

Nuevo Leon 56

Oaxaca 588

Puebla 648

Queretaro 223

Quintana Roo –

San Luis Potosí 237

Sinaloa 4,218

Sonora 1,135

Tabasco 13,213

Tamaulipas 2,657

Tlaxcala –

Veracruz 16,804

Yucatan 2

Zacatecas 6,744

TOTAL 79,154

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and some natural dissipation of ammonia which al-lows some production in the lower raceways, butmuch of the facility is underutilized. When stockedheavily, the raceways were found to be effective forcontrolling unwanted reproduction and for ease offeeding and harvesting. One of the problems encoun-tered was that the fish had a tendency to congregatenear the head of the raceway where the oxygen lev-els were highest. Any uneaten feed would then bepushed to the opposite end and begin to decay. An-

other problem was jumping. The tilapia would jumpfrom one raceway to the adjoining raceway, therebymixing up the inventory. They would also expend con-siderable time and energy attempting to jump up thewaterfall to the higher raceway. A final problem withthe raceways was that the sides were convenient forfish eating birds to perch. The actual “Ray design”uses intermediate filtration sections to remove theammonia. That design was incorporated at the adja-cent Desarrollo Piscícola, S.A. (DEPISA) farm.

Figure 3. Rustic cages in reservoir.

Figure 4. Array of intensively managed cages in reservoir.

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DEPISA was started in the late 1980s and haschanged ownership a couple of times. It was builtfor catfish production and receives water from theirrigation system fed by the Vicente Guerrero Res-ervoir. Up to 18,000 gallons/min are divertedthrough the farm and then returned downstream intothe irrigation canal for later use on field crops (Fig-ure 6). DEPISA has 89 raceways and 40 ha of ponds.The raceways are operated in modules with filtra-

tion sections between modules. The filter sectionsmaintain water quality by removing ammonia, add-ing oxygen and settling out any solids that weremissed in the quiescent zones at the ends of the race-ways. Operations were redirected towards tilapiawhen US prices for catfish fell and tilapia prices inMexico and the US stayed relatively constant. Thefarm also includes a complete processing plant withfresh and frozen capabilities.

Figure 5. Raceways stocked with tilapia in Tamaulipas.

Figure 6. Aerial view of DEPSIA farm near Abasolo, Tamaulipas.

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Intensive Pond Culture–Cultivo en EstanquesIntensivos

The intensive flow-through style of pond cul-ture practiced in Taiwan, Colombia and Costa Ricais still rare in Mexico. DEPISA does raise tilapia inponds as well as raceways (Figure 6). Water divertedfrom an irrigation system is delivered to the tilapiafarm, passes through the ponds and is returned tothe canal for irrigation of field crops. These pondsare not stocked as heavily or provided with as muchflow as intensive ponds in other parts of the world.There are intensive pond systems devoted to catfishin Durango and trout farms in Morelia. This tech-nology and experience will probably be applied tocommercial tilapia production soon. There are sev-eral tilapia hatcheries operated by state and federalagencies that have access to large volumes of waterand multiple ponds, but none of the government fa-cilities rear large volumes of tilapia for food pro-duction. Instead they focus on fry and fingerlingproduction to supply to the social sector.

Intensive Round Tanks–Cultivo en TanquesCirculares

Cultivation of tilapia in round tanks in an inten-sive system is still rare in Mexico. A commercialfacility that rears tilapia and catfish operates nearthe DEPISA farm outside of Abasolo, Tamaulipas.This farm uses a gravity-fed water supply from theVicente Guerrero irrigation canal. The tanks aredrained through a center standpipe and supplemen-

tal aeration is provided using oxygen injection. (Fig-ure 7) The farm has an on-site feed mill using anInsta-Pro Extruder. Processing is completed at thefarm with freezing and packaging available. The pro-cessing plant brings in other freshwater and marineproducts, as the tilapia production has not reachedthe capacity of the processing facilities.

The San Patricio Farm, south of Ciudad Juarezin Chihuahua, uses a recirculating system to raisetilapia in a greenhouse complex. Some fish are keptin round tanks with center drains while others arereared in rectangular tanks. The operation uses asophisticated series of mechanical and biologicalfilters to maintain water quality. The Acuaculturadel Paraiso farm in San Luis Potosi uses 20 m diam-eter tanks, 2.5 m deep, to produce 9 t/mo. The tila-pia produced are sold for $17/kg (US$1.70/kg)whole at the farm for retail sale in Mexico City (J.L. Aldrett Lee, pers. comm.).

Experiments in round tanks have been con-ducted at the Guaymas campus of ITESM and at theUniversity of Arizona experimental facilities inPuerto Peñasco, both in Sonora. These trials focusedon the potential for rearing tilapia in salt water. Bothsystems used a flow-through design with water re-turning to the ocean or, in the case of the Universityof Arizona, used to irrigate halophytes or seaweeds.

Figure 7. Intensively managed round tank culture.

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Culture in Salt Water

One of the early introductions of tilapia to thestate of Sonora was by the University of Arizona inthe late 1970s. O. mossambicus were stocked intothe discharge-settling basin of a prototype shrimpfarm (Figure 8). The effluent from the farm con-tained elevated levels of nitrogen and phosphorusthat encouraged large algae blooms. Tilapia werebrought in to control the algae and provide an addi-tional benefit for the farm staff. The fish grewquickly to harvest size in the pond, but did not re-produce in the 40–50l effluent water. The popula-tion was eventually completely harvested by the farmstaff.

In the mid-1980s, several of the raceways andround tanks at the shrimp farm were stocked withO. aureus, O. mossambicus and 2 red hybrid strains.One of the red hybrids came from Taiwan and theother originated in Florida. Parental stocks werespawned at the Environmental Research Lab in Tuc-

son, Arizona. Fingerlings were reared to 40–60 g infreshwater and then were acclimated to seawater(35%) in Tucson. Fingerlings were then transportedto Puerto Peñasco and stocked into a shrimp race-way at 10 fish/m3 with 40l water from a seawaterwell. O. aureus and the Taiwanese red hybrid grewslowly and eventually died. O. mossambicus and theFlorida hybrid strain grew to 600 g in 10 mo. Someof the fish reproduced and a population has beenmaintained at the farm for 10 y in 40l. The farm isnow operated by GENESIS S.A.

One grow-out experiment was to stock 10 g fishin tanks with Gracilaria. This red algae is growncommercially as a source of agar and as a vegetablefor direct human consumption. Juvenile tilapia werevery effective at controlling unwanted epiphyticgrowth on Gracilaria. When the fish grew past 50 gthey began to consume Gracilaria directly and hadto be removed. By putting the algae in a sequentialpolyculture after a tilapia rearing tank, the Gracilariawas fertilized by tilapia wastes. Another multiple use

Figure 8. Shrimp and tilapia farm in Puerto Pensaco, Sonora.

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of tilapia effluent was to rear tilapia in tanks or race-ways and use effluent to irrigate and fertilize halo-phytes. Halophytes are various types of salt tolerantplants that are grown for human and animal con-sumption (Glenn et al. 1998).

Scientists at the ITESM have tested cages inseawater in Bahia Bocachibampo, near Guaymas,Sonora. Red tilapia were reared in cages constructedof PVC and plastic mesh in the ocean. The stockinglocation is a constant 35l salinity.

Feeds

Virtually all tilapia aquaculture in Mexico uti-lizes prepared feeds. In the south and in areas thatuse extensive culture methods, simple feeds are pre-pared by hand or on meat grinders from locally avail-able materials. In the more industrialized north andurbanized areas of central Mexico, manufacturedfeeds are more common. Several feed companiesmanufacture feeds formulated specially for tilapia.Ralston Purina’s subsidiary in Mexico is a majorsupplier. Other feed producers are malta Cleyton,Anderson-Clayton and several regional mills. Somepoultry feed mills also make custom tilapia feeds.

Most of the prepared feeds are sinking feeds;however, floating feeds are also now available fromsome Mexican feed mills. A variety of protein lev-els are available, but most farms use a 32% proteinformulation. These diets tend to be low in fish or

animal meals, with a major portion of the proteinbeing provided by soybean oil meal.

Markets

Autoconsumption

For the original producers of tilapia, marketswere within the household or the local community.Early stocking programs were directed towards therural poor and there were no marketing efforts be-yond informing producers of the nutritional contri-bution ti lapia would make to their diet . Asproduction increased, farmers began to provide fishto local fresh markets. These marketing efforts areoften organized by a cooperative of growers whoband together for processing, transportation andpackaging.

Local Fresh Markets

Fish sold fresh on ice are the most commonlymarketed form throughout the country. Prices varyconsiderably during a year and in different locationsaround Mexico. Quality of the fish also has a tre-mendous impact on price. Size, presence of off-fla-vor and degree of freshness are key determiningfactors. Mexico City’s retail market is the best docu-mented (Figure 9). Large (600 g) and small (250 g)fish are available in many urban retail markets. Thefish are usually provided whole on ice. For example,Mexico City prices in May of 1998 were 18 pesos/kg (0.91 US$/lb) of whole large fresh tilapia on ice,

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Large (grande) 600 g

Figure 9. Fresh whole tilapia, retail prices in Mexico City.

)

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Tilapia Aquaculture in Mexico

while small tilapia were 11 pesos/kg (0.56 US$/lb).In December of 1998 these prices had increased to28 pesos/kg (1.27 US$/lb) and 12.5 pesos/kg (0.57US$/lb).

Live Markets

A market for live fish has been developed inrecent years. One of the cage farmers fromTamaulipas began hauling live tilapia to outlets inGuadalajara and Mexico City. He provided live tanksto stores and consumers were able to take fish homefor preparation or have them prepared on the pre-mises. He specializes in a strain of red hybrids butalso has stocks of O. aureus and O. niloticus.

Another direct outlet for tilapia is on-site prepa-ration. Many farms incorporate a small road side res-taurant with their tilapia farm. Fish are harvestedand prepared, often in front of the customer. Themost common preparation is to gut and scale the fishand then cook it in hot oil. This is a quick, sanitary,healthy and delicious style of preparation (Figure 10).

Processing

Much of the tilapia processed in Mexico is stilldone by individuals harvesting their own fish or bysmall groups processing by hand. However, eachyear more fish are going to large scale processingplants with increasing amounts of value adding.Mexico has adopted Hazard Analysis at CriticalControl Points (HACCP) as the new standard for

processing. This applies to hand and mechanizedprocessing of tilapia. Distribution channels are con-stantly improving their capability of handling tila-pia product forms. This serves to increase marketdemand in urbanized portions of the country. It alsoincreases the capability of exporters to supply theUS, Europe and other international markets. How-ever, exports have been quite small, considering theamount of fish grown in Mexico.

Federal and State Programs

Laws Affecting Tilapia Aquaculture

In 1990 the “Single Window” program was in-stituted. The intent of this program was to designatethe Subsecretariat of Fisheries as the sole contactpoint for applicants for aquaculture permits. Ratherthan applying to separate agencies and boards forreviews and permits, one office would handle theentire application and contact pertinent governmen-tal bodies. This procedure has had limited successbut it can still take years to complete the process.The bulk of regulations pertaining to aquaculture inMexico are contained in the 1992 Fisheries Law (Leyde la Pesca Reglamento 1992). It allows for 100%foreign ownership of most aquaculture operations,extended many aquaculture leases from 20–50 y, andsimplified transfer and renewal of leases. Also in1992, a new Water Law was passed. This removedmany of the restrictions on use of water for aquac-ulture, especially opening reservoirs and irrigationcanals for cage culture of tilapia.

Figure 10. Deep fried tilapia, prepared “Chiapas” style.

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SEPESCA TO SEMARNAP

In December 1994, the agency that oversaw fish-eries and aquaculture regulation and development,SEPESCA, was merged into SEMARNAP (Secre-tary of Environment, Natural Resources and Fisher-ies). This consolidation provided for bettercoordination between offices within the departmentwhich were on the one hand encouraging aquacul-ture development and on the other hand regulatingimpacts of aquaculture on natural resources. Theaquaculture division within SEMARNAP has con-tinued a “one window” policy that attempts to in-corporate all permitting procedures for newaquaculture ventures into a single document(SEMAPNAP 1995).

Federal and State Hatcheries

In the past, SEPESCA was very much involvedas a development agency encouraging growth ofaquaculture. Low cost loan programs were availableto social groups for aquaculture and governmenthatcheries supplied juvenile tilapia to small farms.In 1991 there were 27 SEPESCA hatcheries in 18states producing tilapia fingerlings (Olmos Tomasiniand Tejeda Salinas 1990; Aguilera Hernández andNoriega Curtis 1991b). Hatcheries would produceyoung tilapia that would be given to small produc-ers and social groups. Often, fry and fingerlingswould even be delivered to producers by govern-ment hatchery staff (Figure 11). The goal was to helpthe rural poor to improve their diet and raise their

standard of living. In general this goal was achievedas many small producers grew tilapia. It has madean important contribution to household wealth andnutrition. As Mexico’s economy has changed, a pri-vate sector has begun to emerge that can supply ju-venile tilapia to farmers. Competition betweenpublic and private sector hatcheries, and competingfiscal priorities, has caused the government to re-evaluate the goals of public hatcheries. MergingSEPESCA into SEMARNAP has accelerated thisprocess. The agency is focusing more on regulatoryand extension activities with less emphasis on so-cial development. There is still a goal of assistingsmall farmers, but there are competing goals of pro-tecting the environment and encouraging job cre-ation and export earnings.

Application of advanced techniques for produc-tion of tilapia hybrids, selected strains and sex-re-versed fingerlings has provided an opportunity forthe private sector to develop a market niche. All malepopulations and selected strains are more expensiveto produce and require sophisticated facilities andcapital investments. Public sector hatcheries havehistorically been more involved with providing largenumbers of fry for stocking programs in the ruralsector. The private hatcheries supply more fry tointensive production systems. Empresa DesarrolloAcuícola Potosino, S.A. (DAPSA) is an example ofa hatchery which has specialized in sex reversal oftilapia for Mexican growers. The hatchery in SanLuis Potosí produces primarily sex-reversed O.niloticus, up to 3,000,000 fingerlings/mo, but also

Figure 11. Bagging tilapia fry for delivery to farms in Sinaloa.

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has O. aureus, O. mossambicus, O. hornorum andtheir hybrids available (Rodríguez and Costero1997). As the intensive, industrial sector has grownin importance, more hatcheries have opened to pro-vide private sector fingerlings. SEMARNAP hatch-eries have concentrated on restocking reservoirs andsupplying fingerlings to social groups (ejidos andcooperatives) and individual farmers who operatein small ponds. However, SEMARNAP is re-evalu-ating all of their freshwater hatcheries, recognizingthe conflict that they have with private, for-profithatcheries.

Many Mexican states have developed their ownhatcheries. Fish produced are stocked into watersof the state or provided to farmers. Like the federalhatcheries, state hatcheries are now being reevalu-ated as sources of tilapia. Many are dropping tilapiaproduction in deference to private sector hatcheriesand focusing instead on other species.

Diseases of Tilapia

The most common health problem encounteredin Mexican tilapia is infestation with parasites. Thereare a number of unicellular and multicellular para-sites common to most warm water fish that causemortalities and reduced growth of cultured fish.Jimenez Guzman et al. (1988) have developed anexcellent reference on parasites and diseases of ti-lapia. The text is a valuable reference to any tilapiafarm manager or scientist.

Jimenez Guzman et al. (1988) report the mostcommon protozoan parasite problems in Mexico areOodinium, Costia, Trypanosoma, Ichthiophthirius,Trichodina, Myxobolus and Pleistophora. The mostcommon multicellular parasites were trematodes(Gyrodactylus and Cichlidogyrus) and crustaceans(Lernea, Argulus, Ergasilus and Lamproglena).

The Parasitos y Enfemerdades de la Tilapia textwas prepared before the emergence of Streptococ-cus iniae as a significant factor in tilapia aquacul-ture. The author was not aware of any Streptococcusinfections within Mexico before the date of this pub-lication.

SEMARNAP maintains an agreement with theAutonomous University of Nuevo Leon to providesupport for fish health in Mexican aquaculture. Thereare plans to develop a series of regional diagnosticlabs that would provide services to the industry. Thesource of start up funding would be from an Aquac-

ulture Development Loan from the World Bank.Operating funds would come from a “fee” accountpaid by farmers submitting samples for diagnosisand for consultations on treatment and management.

Diseases appear to be only a minor constraintto producers. Most treat with salt and water ex-change. The regional diagnostic labs will be taskedwith providing treatment suggestions to producersunder the National Aquaculture Development Plan.Scientists involved with the plan are coordinatingwith US and international bodies to harmonize theavailable treatments.

Tilapia Parks, A World Bank Project

The Government of Mexico has developed aNational Aquaculture Development project in con-junction with the World Bank. The plan includesadditional support for aquaculture research, train-ing and education, environmental monitoring,HACCP training, and demonstration/developmentprojects. A primary goal of the plan is to furtherdevelop tilapia production on a national level. Inaddition to more diffuse benefits to be gained fromthe aspects mentioned above, the plan also calls forconstruction and operation of 3 tilapia parks. Eachtilapia park will consist of docks, a boat, and a float-ing cage complex. Cages would be leased to fishfarmers who would care for them on an individualbasis. Each complex will include 100 cages (6.5 m3

each), central feed storage, a small water quality laband some processing facilities. Mexican and inter-national experts will conduct the environmental andsocial impact studies that are required for WorldBank supported projects for each site.

The parks will be located in 3 large reservoirsin 3 states; Vicente Guerrero in Tamaulipas, ElPortillo in Chiapas and Cerro de Oro in Oaxaca(World Bank 1997) (Figure 2). The intent is to sup-port further intensification of tilapia production bylarge scale demonstration of the efficacy of tilapiacage culture. The parks will also be used for train-ing of additional producers. In addition to the ac-tual production generated from the parks, it is hopedthat production will come from leaseholders whodecide to expand beyond the confines of the parksinto other waters.

Future

Mexico is already one of the world’s major tila-pia producers. With an expanding population andincreasing standard of living, domestic demand is

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bound to increase. Proximity to the US also providesa huge potential market. Tilapia producers in Mexicoare having success utilizing culture methods rang-ing from extensive to intensive. Low cost labor isavailable for low skill jobs on the farm, but at thesame time Mexico has many well trained biologistswho are capable of handling the most technical po-sitions at intensively managed farms. World Bankeconomists predict that Mexico’s tilapia productionwill increase to 105,780 t/y by 2005 without the ti-lapia parks. They expect the parks will boost thatfigure by another 895 t/y to 106,675 t by 2005(World Bank 1997).

Mexico has embraced HACCP guidelines in itsseafood processing industry and most processed fishalready meets international standards. In spite of this,Mexican exports of tilapia to the US have been mi-nuscule in the years 1996–1998. In fact, exportamounts have decreased, reflecting the strong inter-nal demand within Mexico (Table 3)

Table 3. Tilapia exports from Mexico to the USA.Fom National Marine Fisheries Service (1999).

Exports to US Declared ValueYear Form (kg) (US$)

1996 Fresh Fillets 6,617 30,631

1997 Frozen Fillets 1,223 8,723

1998 Fresh Fillets 1,057 6,626

It is anticipated that these figures will reverseby the year 2000 and exports to the US will increase.Mexico has tremendous natural and technical re-sources for tilapia production. Changes in exchangerates and increasing demand for tilapia products inthe US will favor Mexican exports.

LITERATURE CITED

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Aguilera Hernández, P. and P. Noriega Curtis. 1991b.La tilapia y su cultivo. Fideicomiso FondoNacional para el Desarrollo Pesquero.

FONDEPESCA. 1981. Instalaciones Piscícolas.Fideicomiso Fondo Nacional para el DesarrolloPesquero.

Glenn, E.P., J.J. Brown and J.W. O’Leary. 1998.Irrigating crops with seawater. Scientific Ameri-can 279(2):56–61.

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Pullin, R.S.V., M.L. Palomares, C.V. Casal, M.M.Dey and D. Pauly. 1997. Environmental impactsof Tilapias. In Fitzsimmons, K. ed. TilapiaAquaculture: Proceedings of the Fourth Interna-tional symposium on Tilapia in Aquaculture.Northeast Regional Agricultural EngineeringService. Ithaca, NY, USA.

Reglamento de la Ley de Pesca. 1992. Diario oficial,July 21, 1992. Government of Mexico.

Rodríguez, S. and M. Costero. 1997. Producciónindustrial de crías de tilapia masculinizadas enSan Luis Potosí. Panorama acuicola 2(6):27.

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