Product Uses

Food Uses 1

Tilapia can be pan-fried, broiled, baked, or braised for human consumption. Tilapia is typically stored and sold as frozen fillets. It is now one of the most widely consumed types of fish in the United States as well as one of the most widely farmed fish in the world.

Non-Food Uses 2

Tilapia leather is used to make a variety of wearable products, such as jewelry, accessories, technology cases, belts, wallets and bags. It is also used for artwork and can also be used as a book binding.

Food Product Codes

Standards and Grades

CODEX Standards 6

No CODEX standard number was located for this product.

FDA Standard of Identity 7

No FDA Standard of Identity was located for this food product.

USDA Grades 8

No US Grade was located for this product.

Consumption, Production and Trade

Estimated Consumption of Tilapia in the United States per capita 2000 - 2009 9

Annual Value of Tilapia Production in the United States 10

FOOD FISH, TILAPIA - SALES, MEASURED IN $ Updated August, 2023.

Annual Quantity of Tilapia Produced in the United States 11

United States Import Patterns 12

Tilapia is imported the most in January and then imports fall to their lowest quite rapidly and hit their bottom by mid-March. They then begin to steadily ride back up to their highest levels, reaching their peak again by mid-December. The rise in imports from mid-March through December is fairly steady and consistent from year to year.

Monthly Imports of Tilapia into the United States 12

Data pulled using HTS codes 030271, 030323, 030379, 030461, 030431, 030451, 0303890040.

US Imports and Exports by Value 13, 12

HTS codes 030271, 030323, 030379, 030461, 030431, 030451, 0303890040.
Pulled data from FAS Group "Tilapia"

US Imports and Exports by Quantity 12

Data pulled using HTS codes 030271, 030323, 030379, 030461, 030431, 030451, 0303890040.

Historic Global Production of Tilapia 15

Active anti-dumping/countervailing duties 16

Based on the list of antidumping and countervailing duty orders current as of July 1, 2020, there are no active antidumping or countervailing duties for this product.

Order Date: 8/12/2003 Country: Vietnam Product: Frozen Fish Fillets Federal Register: 79 FR 70853

Processing and Supply Chain Characteristics

Seasonality Profile 17

Tilapia is a tropical species that prefers to live in shallow water, in preferred temperature of 31-36 degrees Celsius. Maturity in pons is reached at the ago for 5-6 months. Spawning begins when the water temperature reaches 24 degrees Celsius. Following breeding, the incubating and brooding of the female are accomplished in 1-2 weeks, depending on the temperature. Tilapia can live longer than 10 years.

Supply Chain Characteristics 17

The majority of tilapia is farmed. There are a variety of seed inputs used in tilapia breeding as well as a variety of growing techniques. Some use an advanced nursery to grow the fingerlings before they move onto a grow-out facility. The different ongoing techniques include ponds, floating cages, tanks & raceways, and re-circulation systems. Following harvest the fish move onto a wholesaler, to retail, to the end consumer.

Way Exported 18

Tilapia are transported from the farm in tanks that range from 600 to 3,000 L in size in route to loading destinations that range from 136-225 g/L. Aeration is provided by carbon stone or ceramic place diffuses using pure oxygen. At the retail store level the fish are netted from the distributors trucks into plastic laundry baskets, drained, weighed, and carried into the store to be dumped in the holding system. The goal is to not have the fish out of the water for any extended period of time. Fresh or frozen fillets are exported and available in different sizes and packages, as skin-on, skin-off, deep skinned, individually quick frozen, smoked, and surimi grade and are treated by carbon monoxide or ozone dipped.

Shipping pattern into US 17

Frozen whole tilapia exports come from Taiwan Province of Chine primarily but the US markets prefer fillets that get exported from Jamaica, Colombia, and Costa Rica as a fresh product.

Typical Packaging 19

The packaging for tilapia has been diversifying in recent years. Typically the two fillet packages are presented in a shrink wrapped Styrofoam tray. However there are also boxed fillet preparations, to provide for more marketing graphics. The other common packaging format is the resealable packages that contain multiple frozen and/or individually wrapped fillets.

Food Safety and Defense

Key Activity Type - Coating/Mixing/Grinding/Rework 21

Yes - coating/mixing/grinding/rework, staging and preparation, liquid receiving and loading, and liquid storage/holding tanks

Key Activity Type - Ingredient Staging/Prep/Addition 21

Yes - Staging and preparation

Key Activity Type - Liquid Receiving/Loading 21

Yes - bulk receiving and loading

Key Activity Type - Liquid Storage/Hold/Surge Tanks 21

Yes - liquid storage

Recall history 22

There have been two recalls related to tilapia in the past 5 years, both of which were contaminated with listeria monocytogenes. There were two recalls in 2018 and 2017 for undeclared allergens. There was another recall on tilapia in 2020 for Salmonella contamination.

Foodborne illness pathogens 23

Food-borne illnesses are not commonly associated with tilapia fillets, however since they are so widely consumed, tilapia has been researched regarding the following food borne illnesses listeria monocytogenes, salmonella, shigella, staphylococcus, and E.Coli.

List of past EMA adulterants

Pangasius

Current issues 24

There have been conversations around the health concerns of tilapia in the news recently. Researchers at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine recently released a study that compared the fatty acid levels of popular fish, including tilapia, and found that it contained far less omega-3 fatty acids than other common fish such as salmon. The report also reported that the inflammatory potential of hamburger and pork is lower than that of farmed tilapia, which is raising a lot of concern among consumers and nutritionists. Since the release of this article there have been a lot more consumer perceptions regarding the