ROME: A highly contagious disease is spreading among farmed and wild tilapia, one of the world’s most important fish for human consumption, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said on Friday. In 2015, world tilapia production, from both aquaculture and capture, amounted to 6.4 million tons, with an estimated value of USD9.8 billion, and worldwide trade was valued at USD1.8 billion. The fish is a mainstay of global food security and nutrition, GIEWS said. According to the food agency, actively TiLV surveillance is being conducted in China, India, Indonesia and it is planned to start in the Philippines. FAO data show, China, Indonesia and Egypt are the three leading aquaculture producers of tilapia, a fish deemed to have great potential for expansion in sub-Saharan Africa.

Source: Manila Times May 27, 2017 03:33 UTC