Tilapia, originally from Africa, is a tropical fish species with over 100 subspecies. It is characterized by fast growth, high yield, omnivorous diet, low disease incidence, and strong reproductive ability. Tilapia, also known as African carp, is one of the main aquaculture products in China and an important economic fish species in many regions.

China is the largest exporter of tilapia, and its export volume has remained high. However, as domestic demand for tilapia increases, China's export volume of tilapia has gradually declined.

According to Chinese customs data, from 2019 to 2022, the export volume and value of frozen, chilled, or fresh tilapia from China have been decreasing. In 2022, the export value of fresh, chilled, or frozen tilapia was 268 million US dollars, an increase of 2.66% from the same period last year, while the export volume was 102,000 tons, a decrease of 2.76%.

China's main markets for fresh, chilled, or frozen tilapia exports, in terms of both quantity and value, are Ivory Coast, Burkina Faso, Russia, Mali, Germany, and the UK. The main destination markets for China's tilapia exports are concentrated in Africa and Western Europe. However, the United States is the biggest tilapia lover in the world, and according to reports, its tilapia import trade volume exceeds half of the global tilapia trade, making it the world's largest importer of tilapia, with Brazil being the main source country of imports.

According to Brazilian data, Brazilian tilapia exports have been on an increasing trend, with a total export value of 2.169 billion US dollars in 2022, a year-on-year increase of 51.11%, and a total export volume of 6,689.64 tons, a year-on-year increase of 56.6%. The main export markets are the United States, Canada, the Arab world, Mexico, the Dominican Republic, Turkey, and Albania. Currently, except for the European Union, Brazil's tilapia market is continuing to grow internationally. Although many countries are vigorously developing the tilapia aquaculture industry, many emerging countries are also competing with China for the traditional tilapia market. In the future, processed export trade may face even more severe competition. However, other Asian countries such as Vietnam and India are not yet able to compete with China in the short term.

Currently, only Brazilian tilapia has maintained its competitiveness worldwide, gradually devouring the Chinese tilapia market. Chinese tilapia exporters should pay attention to this rising force and continuously explore new markets to ensure China's position as a major tilapia exporter.

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Note: The tilapia export data mentioned above include frozen tilapia (HS: 03032300), frozen tilapia fillets (HS: 03046100), fresh or chilled tilapia fillets (HS: 03043100), and fresh or chilled tilapia (HS: 03027100) combined.