Tilapia culture has sharply expanded throughout the world during
the past two decades. Production systems of tilapia have also witnessed
a rapid industrialization during this period. As a result, the global production
of farmed tilapia has increased from 383,654 metric tons (mt)
in 1990 representing 4.5% of total farmed fish production to 3,497,391
mt in 2010, representing 8.9% of total farmed fish production, with an
average annual growth of 13.5% (FAO, 2012). This trend has created a
gap between seed supply and farmer's demand. Therefore, the major
challenge facing tilapia culture industry is the production of sufficient
amounts of quality seed.