“Why did he choose the pla mo that? Because local fish like local carp or pla tapian would only reproduce once a year” explained Supawat Kamolmarl director of the Royal Fisheries Initiated “But the tilapia species would give birth every three months.”
Tilapia also is easy to raise as they are mouthbrooders meaning that the female fish incubate their eggs in their mouth. Once the eggs develop into young fish she lets them go and in six months time they’ll be a good size to eat or sell. They additionally grow ideally in closed fresh water systems like aquaclutures or rice fields. So it was King Bhumibol’s idea that the fish could be raised in rice fields during plantation season so farmers and their families could have the full nutrients they need.