Navigating post-pandemic tilapia farming: a systematic review and meta-analysis of probiotic as a strategy for sustainable production

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted tilapia farming worldwide, causing a notable decline in production and marketing since 2020. To address post-pandemic challenges, such as antibiotic resistance and the need for sustainable feed enhancement strategies, probiotics have emerged as a promising solution. However, systematic evaluation based on statistical methods is lacking. This paper presents a systematic review and meta-analysis investigating the pandemic’s effects on tilapia farming and the utilization of sustainable feed enhancement strategies, including probiotics. Following the PRISMA methodology, key bibliographic databases and rigorous inclusion and exclusion criteria were used, which allowed the selection of 90 articles that met the criteria. The effectiveness of these strategies in improving productivity and reducing antibiotic use was assessed through meta-analysis, focusing on key performance indicators such as feed conversion ratio (FCR) and specific growth rate (SGR). The meta-analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics, with effect sizes computed as standardized mean differences (SMD) and adjusted for small sample size. Despite restrictions due to pandemic, the sector shows signs of rapid recovery. Although the meta-analysis indicates a significant positive effect of probiotics on FCR, highlighting their potential to improve tilapia farming sustainability, significant heterogeneity in SGR outcomes suggests the need for further research. In summary, this study contributes to addressing post-pandemic challenges in tilapia farming by systematically evaluating the use of probiotics as an efficient strategy for sustainable production.