Tilapia being farmed in British Columbia
Barry Sjöström was a fisherman for 25 years before he started farming tilapia, harvesting his first fish in 2001. At a recirculation facility near Courtenay on Vancouver Island, Sjöström produces live fish for the largely Asian market in and around Vancouver. It is the only such facility in B.C.
Following an investment of approximately $ CAD 1.0 million, Redfish Ranch Tilapia and Hatchery is now starting to make money. At a selling price of $ CAD 3.95 per pound ($ 8.70 per kilo) in the round, and no processing costs beside delivery charges, it is a paying proposition, even after having to heat the ground water from approximately 10°C to 28°. This is where insulation and recirculation comes in handy.
Tilapia is the fifth most eaten fish in the US, with consumption on a steady rise, showing a quadrupling in consumption between 2003 and 2006. Most of the product used in the US is frozen tilapia fillets from Asia, while Sjöström competes with live producers from Idaho, one of whom has a 30 tank farm whereas Sjöström is facing an uphill bureaucratic battle in order to expand his seven tank facility.
