Delivering Better Quality Tilapia Seed to Farmers

A cornerstone of upgrading productivity of tilapia culture is the continuous improvement in the quality of seed used by farmers. This statement is relevant to the spectrum of tilapia production systems, but ‘quality’ is subjective and requires to be defined for specific contexts. An overview of strategies to improve the quality of seed under different conditions is presented. Consumer, marketing and producer perceptions of quality are assessed using examples drawn from a range of situations. The potentials and constraints of different approaches to tilapia seed improvement are considered; these include selfsufficiency at farm level through to upgrading at farm, specialised hatchery or institutional levels. The impacts of germplasm transfers, selective breeding and genetic manipulation are considered. Impacts of changing consumer demand, culture system and level of intensification on seed quality are discussed before an assessment of the roles of Government and private sector in maintaining and improving seed quality to farmers. Strategies that promote centralised hatcheries, in which large-scale production occurs at relatively few locations, are compared to a more decentralised approach with respect to quality, consistency of supply and equity of benefits. Finally, the implications of promoting mono-sex compared to mixed sex tilapia seed are compared.