Shrimp Farming And Tilapia Farming Have Become Major Global Seafood Industries
Two different aquatic creatures with very different ecological needs are now taking the seafood industry by storm. Shrimp and tilapia are fast becoming two of the most popular seafood items grown in fish farms and served in thousands of restaurant menus across the world. What might have contributed to this sudden boom in the industry, and how can two ecologically different creatures emerge so popular at the same time?
The Rise of Shrimp Farming in the Markets
Apart from the delicious white meat texture of tilapia and the succulent taste of shrimp, the most popular decapods crustacean, various changes in the technology and agriculture have urged shrimp and tilapia farmers to increase their production of these organisms. Today, the shrimp farming revolution is to thank for the rise of shrimps in the market. At the present, about 90% of all the shrimp that make it to American dinner plates are raised overseas, and a significant amount of that number comes from aquaculture farms.
In the 1980s no one had any idea how to raise shrimps in captivity. Shrimp farmers were clueless as to how to combat viruses in shrimp and how to adjust the salinity of water to maximize their growth. Catching shrimp in the wild was a very expensive process, causing shrimp prices to rise along with it. Long ago, shrimp was a rare luxury, and you had to be one of the wealthy to enjoy its succulent taste. Today, however, as seafood technologists developed ways on how to hatch shrimp eggs in captivity and use purification and filtration processes to control water salinity, the development of shrimp ponds rose to popularity and today, shrimp can be found almost anywhere.
The Popularity of Tilapia
Today, tilapia has garnered the fifth spot in the most consumed seafood in the United states. Americans as well as Europeans adore the white meat taste of tilapia, as they revel in the glory of eating fish that's low in fat and cholesterol. Today, most of the Tilapia consumed across the world comes from the Philippines, one of the world's leading producers of tilapia. One popular reason for the sudden surge in the sales of tilapia is the significant increase in the sales of fresh fillets from Ecuador's fish farm. Ecuador has developed a fantastic way to develop tilapia in captivity, and you guessed it, tilapia farming is employed in the same ponds as shrimp do.
Shrimp and Tilapia Poly-Culture
Today, on fish farm operations, tilapia is raised along with shrimp to combat infections such as the white-spot disease. Ecuador stocks tilapia in shrimp ponds that are ravaged by this disease. In an effort to diversify the production, tilapia are introduced to the same pond as the shrimps are. In the polyculture process, only dead shrimp is eaten by the tilapia in order to prevent the transmission of diseases, thus, shrimp farm ponds that have stalled because of the white spot virus can once again be reactivated by growing tilapia. Also, shrimp and tilapia have a beneficial relationship. The tilapia clear the water of microalgae, while the shrimp feed on organic matter and debris from tilapia food, reducing about 60 percent of the costs required for shrimp feed.
