The COVID-19 pandemic has brought logistic issues to many aquaculture companies due to limited available flights and closed borders. Specifically, the import restrictions that some countries have taken regarding the tilapia lake virus had already severely limited Til-Aqua International current operations.
Kenya, a country where the company currently markets its YY breeding stock, has closed the border for imports of live tilapia. “Our government had several meetings with the Kenyan government to convince them that our tilapia is 100% disease-free. Unfortunately, the various departments and ministries involved do not agree to date. Other countries asked for more guarantees and we need a special health certificate stating that our fish is TiLV-free based on laboratory tests. For almost every country involved, we now have this certificate ready or are in the final stage, as for the U.S. These health certificates are country-specific and time-consuming because they are agreements between governments,” said Eric Bink, owner of Til-Aqua International, to HatcheryFM.
As a result, the company decided to drastically change course so as not to waste 25 years of genetic effort and sell its genetics to interested parties. “We believe that transferring our YY technology to countries for local YY production is the best option. These parties would own YY-males and YY-females and would receive the information on how to maintain these lines,” said Bink.
The company offers its genetic lines (Silver and Red) for a certain number of interested parties. The new owner is offered exclusivity for an agreed area or country. A local copy of Til-Aqua can be set up with the genetics offered and comprehensive manual and support for maintenance and continuation of the genetic lines are available.
Deadline for interested parties is October 1, 2020. Til-Aqua is closing down their breeding department on December 31, 2020. For more information, contact info@til-aqua.com or download the file below.
Til-Aqua International is a genetic company founded in 1995 that developed tilapia YY-males and YY-females for the production of all-male tilapia without the use of hormones, the so-called YY-Technology – YY-males. The Silver line (wildtype) achieves 99.7% male-ratio with Til-Aqua's female line and with other (local) female lines, male ratios are over 95%. In addition to the high male ratio, they are disease-free, high disease resistant, have an optimal immune system and high genetic variation.
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