​Seafood Import

In recent years, Chinese frozen tilapia has been exported in large quantities across oceans and has gained popularity in the African market due to its excellent quality and affordable pricing. Africa is the main export destination for Chinese tilapia. According to statistics from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), African countries imported 83,000 tons of frozen tilapia and tilapia fillets from China in 2021, accounting for 64% of China's total frozen tilapia exports that year. In terms of export value, China exported tilapia totaling US$38.7 million (approximately 244 million yuan) to Côted'Ivoire in 2021. In that same year, China also exported tilapia to Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Togo for US$14.7 million (approximately 92.51 million yuan), US$4.8 million (approximately 30.2 million yuan), and US$4 million (approximately 25.17 million yuan), respectively. Fish is a common dish on the table of ordinary Africans.

 

However, for a long time, there has been a huge gap in the market demand and local production of edible fish in Africa, especially in West Africa. Taking Nigeria as an example, the country's annual market demand for edible fish is about 3.2 million tons, of which only 1.1 million tons are produced locally, and the remaining 2.1 million tons are all imported. Similarly, in Ghana, the annual food fish market demand is about 1 million tons, of which only 400,000 tons are domestically produced. Senegal, which consumes about 24.5 kilograms of food fish per capita per year, is largely dependent on foreign imports as the country's aquaculture farms are over-exploited by large foreign vessels, leading to a sharp drop in catches.

 

Frozen tilapia imported from China are cheap and high-quality. They are very popular among African people and are in high demand in the market.