her Grimes, associate professor and state specialist for nutrition and health.

“This is a really special project,” Dr. Novelo said. “The principal leaders of the project come from a very different background.”

Aquaculture Extension personnel can and do help farmers produce tilapia, but their production won't be profitable without a market to sell in and consumers who will buy tilapia. That's where marketing, economics, and nutrition come in.

“Tilapia has had some bad publicity,” Dr. Novelo said. Some people label tilapia a man-made fish and refuse to eat it, but that’s not true. “Tilapia is natural, tilapia is coming from the Earth.”

Tilapia is a popular fish to eat across the world, but less so in the United States. Part of the goal is making people comfortable with handling and cooking the fish. The grant team is currently working on a series of videos that cover fish processing, making healthy recipes with tilapia, and more.

Dr. Noel Novelo prepares a meal with Kentucky State-produced tilapia at the Harold R. Benson Research and Demonstration Farm in Frankfort, Kentucky, on Jan. 20, 2023. | Photo by Jonathan Palmer

Kentucky State University personnel want you to eat tilapia— because if more people in Kentucky eat tilapia, that means more Kentucky small farmers can profitably raise tilapia.

“This project was created with the vision that it would introduce diversification of farm products in existing farms,” said Dr. Noel Novelo, aquaculture research associate at Kentucky State.

Dr. Novelo is the principal investigator of a USDA-funded grant titled, “Expanding Aquaculture and Healthy Food Choices to Reduce Economic and Health Disparities Affecting Minority and Limited-Resource Stakeholders.”

“Expanding Aquaculture and Healthy Food Choices to Reduce Economic and Health Disparities Affecting Minority and Limited-Resource Stakeholders.”

Previous grants have funded Kentucky State’s ongoing research to more effectively raise tilapia. This grant, funded for $250,000 from 2021 to 2024, is focused on bringing that information to farmers, businesses, and other stakeholders.

“At a time when there is practically no systematic tilapia production in Kentucky and when tilapia consumption is evident and dependent on importation, the tilapia Extension project will support tilapia hatchery production in Kentucky and other states,” Dr. Novelo said. “In the long-term, the project seeks to strengthen local businesses and impact healthier living.”

Mishra said the team is trying to educate Kentuckians about the importance of eating lean protein, since proteins are the “building blocks of our body.” Most sources of animal protein are also rich in fats.

“We do not want more fats in our food but need more protein in every meal,” Mishra said. “Tilapia fish is one such source of lean protein, with a much smaller fat percentage.”

Several people will contribute tilapia recipes to the video series, to show stakeholders simple and healthy meal options.

Aquaculture graduate student Uchechukwu Ohajiudu did a cooking demonstration of pepper soup, a favorite recipe from his native Nigeria. He grew up in the kitchen with his mom as she made the soup. She learned not to leave him unattended, or else he would steal a taste.

“It’s a very nice dish,” Ohajiudu said. “It’s simple to cook; it’s easy to understand.”

The dish can be made with any meat, including tilapia. The signature ingredient is pepper. Ohajiudu likes his soup to be spicy because he's used to spice, but others could scale it back when they make the dish.

consumption is evident and dependent on importation, the tilapia Extension project will support tilapia hatchery production in Kentucky and other states," Dr. Novelo said. "In the long-term, the project seeks to strengthen local businesses and impact healthier living."

This project includes collaboration across areas: Dr. Novelo of aquaculture is joined by Nilima Mishra, Extension specialist for dietetics and human nutrition; Dr. Marcus Bernard, interim chair of the School of Agriculture, Food and the Environment; and Dr. Kristop-

Dr. Novelo hopes that people will learn that tilapia is a good option, similar in many ways to catfish.

"It reminds me of home," Ohajuidu said. "I get lonely, then I'll just get a few ingredients and then make it. Having pepper soup just takes my mind back home."

For more information about tilapia production, contact Dr. Noel Novelo at noel.novelo@kysu.edu.