Fish farming corresponds to approximately 90% of the Brazilian aquaculture production, which in 2022 reached 739,376 t. Tilapia production alone accounts for approximately 55% of this production and 40% of the commercialized value (IBGE, 2023). Despite being a major aquaculture producer in the world (FAO, 2022), the export rates of the country’s production are still very low. In the case of tilapia, historically (2013 to 2022), Brazil exported less than 2.2% of its total production (CIAQUI, 2023).
The purpose of this research is to analyze the trajectory of economic upgrading in tilapia farming units in the Midwest and Northeast of Brazil between 2018 and 2024. The research is theoretically based on the Global Value Chains (GVCs) approach and, more specifically, on its analytical dimension of economic upgrading.
Methodologically, the research is divided into two stages. The first stage will seek to review and update the 2018 economic upgrading indexes [Ribeiro & Pedroza Filho, 2022] in the second half of 2024 using the Delphi method. In the second stage, the 2024 fuzzy upgrading indexes will be constructed and compared to those of 2018. The data for the 2024 indicators will be collected through questionnaires in the first quarter of 2025, on tilapia farms located in three production zones: Submédio Baixo São Francisco (BA/PE/AL), Serra da Mesa and Cana Brava (GO) and Boa Esperança (PI).
As expected results, the research will be able to create quantitative upgrading indexes, as well as establish an initial basis for the development of a continuous monitoring system of the upgrading trajectory in the Brazilian tilapia value chain. In the future, a dashboard could include other tilapia value chain links, as well as other perspectives for upgrading, such as environmental and social.