City to savour Nile-origin fish

Fish farmers in coastal districts of the State are catching up with the world famous Tilapia fish, scientifically known as Oreochromis Niliticus of Egypt origin. It is one of the world’s top ten fish widely consumed and also one of the four popular fish along with tuna, salmon and Alaskon. The Central government is propagating the Tilapia culture among farmers in view of the nutritious value and taste factor associated with it.

It can be cut like bread slices and easily cooked as it is boneless. It is as good as our major carps including Catla, Rohu, Bocha and Mrigala and is catching up well among fish farmers. Its culture is limited to Krishna, Guntur and Godavari districts. A fish farmer at Kazipalem village in Pitlavanipalem mandal is raising the farm successfully in 10 acres of fish ponds. Mathsyaraju Venkateswarlu says that Tilapia is popular because it is a mild flavored, white-fleshed fish that is available throughout the year.

The Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Acquaculture (TRGCA) at Kankipadu is supplying seeds for cultivation. The TRGCA has supplied 50,000 seeds for one hectare. A yield of 10 tonnes per hectare is expected. The cost of one unit per hectare is two lakh rupees, of which one lakh is a subsidy given by the government. The income on one hectare of Tilapia farm is Rs10 lakhs. Minus all expenditure the farmer is expected to gain more than five lakh rupees.

“The weight of a fully grown fish is 600 grams. The most popular product form is skinless, thornless and boneless fillets ranging in size from 3 to 9 ounces (5 to 7 ounce fillets are the most common). Various processing and packaging methods are used to ensure that fillets have a mild flavor and retain their bright red color,” Venkateswarulu added.

Fish Development Officer VV Ranganath Babu stated that fish consumers are mostly habituated to the consumption of major carps. “Once fish consumers have a date with Tilapia they would fall in love with the lovely fish and its ready to cook nature is suitable to consume while travelling. It can simply be carried and eaten like bread slices. More farmers would follow suit once the lone farmer in the district harvests the crop and spreads its success story,” he added.

Tilapia has a low to moderate fat content, and is a rich source of high quality protein. A nutrition label for a three ounce cooked portion of tilapia is provided. Nutrient levels can be affected by the ingredients and cooking method used to prepare tilapia fillets. What’s the best part is that tilapia is a sustainable farm-raised product. Because tilapia are herbivorous fish that feed on algae, there is no need for feeds or herbs together to produce two or more products in the same water based system.

There is no need for feeds produced from wild caught fish. Raising tilapia in some ponds or other small water bodies can actually help improve the quality of waters compromised by excessive algae blooms. Some farming operations are using a technique called aquaponics to cultivate fish and vegetables or herbs together to produce two or more products in the same water based system.

By Ravi P Benjamin