USSEC recently concluded a successful demonstration project with WorldFish which took place between April and December 2013.  The objective of this project was to demonstrate the production performance of improved genetic strain tilapia from the WorldFish Center in Egypt using USSEC-recommended fish culture techniques, soy-optimized extruded feed, and zero water exchange pond management.  The demonstration project is a means of convincing both government and private sectors of the economic, sustainability and food safety advantages of USSEC’s technology.  Demonstration protocols were based on the USSEC production model and U.S. hi-pro soybean meal was used to formulate the feed for this demonstration.  Because almost 1000 fish per pond, a total of 12,000 fish, were sampled individually, (i.e. the weight of each fish is individually measured and logged into a database), the process took longer than expected due to the large sample size, approximately 25% of the population.  While the results of the demonstration have not been concluded, it is clear that the overall size of the sample fish is larger than fish produced on a commercial farm.  USSEC’s local aquaculture coordinator in Egypt, Salah Taher, believes this greater size is due to the high quality protein source in the feed.

WorldFish is an international, non-profit research organization dedicated to reducing poverty and hunger by improving fisheries and aquaculture.  With more than 353 scientists and staff based in 8 countries across Asia, Africa and the Pacific, the organization works in more than 19 countries around the world with regional offices located in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Egypt, Malawi, Malaysia (HQ), Philippines, Solomon Islands, and Zambia.