Between 2005 and 2015, the
production of the most farmed fish in Brazil, tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus),
experienced a 223 per cent growth thanks to the modernization and
intensification of its production, both in cages and in containers dug in the
ground. 
In 2005, tilapia production
in the country was 67,850.50 tonnes, according to the Brazilian
Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA). Already in 2015, the
Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) estimated that the
production of this species reached 219,329 tonnes, reported EMBRAPA Fisheries and Aquaculture. These data were collected
during the performance of the project "The socioeconomic repercussions of
tilapia farming in Brazil" led by EMBRAPA Fishing and Aquaculture (TO) and
its partners, who visited seven major production hubs of this species: Oros y
Castanhao in Ceará ; Sub-medio y Bajo San Francisco, on the border of the
states of Bahia, Pernambuco and Alagoas; Ilha Solteira in the border of San
Pablo with Mato Grosso del Sur; the northern and western regions of Paraná and
Valle Bajo del Itajaí, in Santa Catarina. The favourable climate, the
resistance of the species to accept different production systems and the high
demand of the products, in addition to the good results of intensive farming,
are some of the factors that have contributed to consolidate the production of
tilapia in the country. The regulation of the use
of public waters for the intensive culture of fish in cages promoted tilapia
farming, a species that concentrates 90 per cent of the requests of aquaculture
sites in the country. "The concession of the
use of water from lakes and hydroelectric dams has allowed aquaculture
producers to start production without having possession of these waters, which
accelerates the growth of this industry in the country," explains
veterinarian doctor Renata Melon Barroso, coordinator of the project led by
EMBRAPA. The study also found that
there has been an increase in the technification of production and a greater
professionalism of the producers in many hubs, which contributed to a
substantial increase in productivity. "The use of equipment,
associated with management practices to control the farming parameters, has
contributed to increase the density of cultivation also in the excavated ponds,
increasing the productivity that, in the hubs that are based on the use of
nurseries on land, as in Paraná and Santa Catarina, jumped from 30 to 50 tonnes
per hectare," says Barroso. According to the expert,
the increase in productivity can be attributed to the greater professionalism
of fish farmers, who understand that in order to be competitive and stay in
business they must have control of their operations and use cost recording
mechanisms, with great care of management and water quality. The profitability of
tilapia, which can vary from 10 to 20 per cent for the producer, has led to
greater investment to buy equipment in order to improve water quality and
automate farming, as well as for high quality food. At the most advanced hubs,
scientists have observed the use of aerators - ventilators that increase the
amount of oxygen in the water and allow more fish to be raised in the same
space - as well as automatic feeders, classifiers and counters, among other
equipment. 
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