Tilapia to fetch Rs. 8,000 cr.

Speakers from Malaysia, USA, Philippines, Israel and Thailand attend India Tilapia Summit-2014. Stressing the need for diversification for improving domestic market, Vijaya Gupta asked farmers to take up tilapia farming, which was a delicious dish and most-sought after variety in the U.S.A, Egypt and other countries.

Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has set a target to produce 12 lakh metric tonnes of Genetically Improved Farm Tilapia (GIFT) fish, valued about Rs. 8,000 crore in the next five years in Andhra Pradesh, according to its Chairman Leena Nair.

MPEDA is planning to organise more meetings on tilapia fish farming to enlighten farmers which can boost marine exports, she said.

Ms. Nair, along with Principal Secretary (Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development and Fisheries ) Dr. Manmohan Singh, World Food Prize Laureate M. Vijaya Gupta, Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture (RGCA) Chairman, Scientific Advisory Committee, E.G. Silas and RGCA Project Director Y.C. Thampi Sam Raj participated in the first India Tilapia Summit - 2014, organised by MPEDA here on Thursday.

Experts from Malaysia, USA, Philippines, Israel and Thailand and all over India participated in the one-day event.

Addressing the aqua farmers, scientists, entrepreneurs, stakeholders and exporters, Ms. Nair said that China stood top in the world followed by Egypt and Indonesia in Tilapia farming. The production of the genetically improved fish was 4.3 million tonne in 2012, and it is expected to reach 7.3 million tonnes by 2030.

“India is having a good potential for cultivating Tilapia, which can be farmed in fresh and brackish water, reservoirs, lakes and ponds. If tilapia is raised in 10 per cent of the existing water bodies in Andhra Pradesh, we can produce 12 lakh metric tonnes in the next five years,” said the MPEDA Chairman.

Mr. Vijaya Gupta, who was the keynote speaker, said that tilapia was the second largest traded fish variety in the international market. Stressing the need for diversification for improving domestic market, he asked to take up tilapia farming, which was a delicious dish and most-sought after variety in the U.S.A, Egypt and other countries.

Dr. Manmohan Singh said the Government of Andhra Pradesh has approved cultivating GIFT Tilapia on November 27, and farmers can take up farming by taking brood stock from RGCA, a research unit of MPEDA.