Unidad Nayarit del Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas del Noroeste (UNCIBNOR) (Fig. 1) continues to consolidate itself as a center for technological development and innovation in Tilapia. Its facilities have been in continuous operation for more than three and a half years. In the period that has elapsed, the Unit continues to have a significant influence on the Tilapia value chain in Western Mexico by being depositories and distributors of one of the best genetic lines of Tilapia in the world, with operations in the facilities of our laboratory, dedicated to the production of offspring and juveniles of this species with Biofloc technology (BFT).
With this, it has been possible to provide the raw material required by aquaculturists, producers, and fishers organized in cooperative societies and rural production societies in western Mexico (Nayarit, Jalisco, Michoacán), Guerrero, Campeche, Hidalgo, Sinaloa, Zacatecas, and Baja California Sur, where the demand for our product has been increasing. Since the beginning of the Unit’s operations, it has managed to sell approximately a little more than 15 million male tilapia hatchlings. Supporting more than one hundred producers, considering that UNCIBNOR continues to consolidate itself in this area and is the key to the development of the tilapia production industry in our country.
In addition, the advisory and technical assistance actions demanded by the producers have continued to increase, as well as the development of demonstration projects of the different existing technological alternatives for the production of tilapia. In the same way, in this period, the task of training students from regional higher education institutions has been increasing to contribute to the training of professional and technical staff required by aquaculture and fishing in our country. The personnel commissioned by Conacyt to UNCIBNOR have been working on integrating research proposals focused mainly on the optimization of farming techniques, the development of assisted tilapia fisheries in natural and artificial reservoirs, and the transfer of farming technologies to vulnerable groups in Mexico.