Tilapia

Facilities Requirements

Facilities required for the production of tilapia depend, to a large extent, on the size of the market. The smallest size which could be considered economically feasible for commercial production would be 63,000 pounds of fish (live weight) per year. Tilapia farms have existed which produced 2 million pounds (live weight) per year. Facility requirements for an indoor fish farm producing 80,000 pounds per year (live weight) are presented here. A facility of this size is big enough to be profitable, yet allows for future expansion should the market potential exist. It would require 4-to-5 hours per day of labor. An insulated pole shed measuring 75 feet by 90 feet in length with 14 foot sidewalls could efficiently house the facility. The building would have nine tanks 46 inches deep with diameters from 9 to 30 feet. The total cost for constructing and equipping a facility of this type would be $175,000.

The 80,000-pound facility would require about 46,000 gallons of water for the holding tanks. An additional 4,000 gallons would be needed for the biotreatment unit, sump tank, and pipe and waste treatment. With a projected water flow rate of 10 gallons per minute, a total of 82 hours would be required to fill the system. A constant supply of make up water running at 3 to 5 gallons per minute would be required. Make-up water is necessary to replace water loss because of evaporation and waste disposal.

Costs associated with building and operating the facility are shown below. Based on a projected sale price of $1.12 per pound live weight and a 2 percent growth rate, each year the enclosed tilapia production facility would contribute $4,571 to owner labor, management and equity capital.