Tilapia Welfare Egypt Project reaches % 10 milestone, improving welfare of 260 million fish

Editor/Mohamed shihiab

By: Chris Chase

The Tilapia Welfare Egypt Project has managed to aid in improving the welfare of 10 percent of Egypt’s farmed Nile tilapia, or just over 260 million fish.

The fish welfare project is a collaboration between Scotland-based Ethical Seafood Research (ESR), England-based FAI Farms, and Aquavet Egypt that set out to reduce fish mortality rates and shrink production costs for Nile tilapia in Egypt. Launched in early 2024, the project provides training to fish farmers and helps them take better care of their fish, monitor water quality, and improve fish handling for both better fish welfare and better farming results.

"We’re thrilled with the progress we’re making," ESR Founder Wasseem Emam said. "We’re demonstrating the power of ethical aquaculture practices in positively impacting both the fish and farmers.”

Emam said the collaboration has already gotten more than 300 downloads of FAI’s tilapia welfare app, and 150 welfare educators have been trained to share knowledge throughout Egypt’s tilapia aquaculture sector.

“We’re making real strides toward sustainable, welfare-focused farming,” he said.

Those apps and training courses have been brought to more than 1,000 different farms in major tilapia production regions in Egypt, including Kafr El Sheikh, Beheira, Sharkia and Port Said. Alongside that, the Tilapia Welfare Egypt Project said it has conducted more than 3,000 welfare assessments and is approaching 4,000 assessments completed.

"This initiative has huge potential to transform aquaculture in Egypt," FAI COO Murilo Quintiliano said. "Egypt is one of the world’s top tilapia producers, and by introducing welfare practices on this scale, we’re seeing a tangible shift toward better fish health, higher farm profitability and improved industry standards.”

FAI CEO Øistein Thorsen said the project is contributing to FAI’s goal of improving tilapia welfare globally.

"We’re not only addressing an overlooked area of animal welfare but also reshaping the future of Egypt’s aquaculture sector by aligning better fish care with economic benefits for farmers,” he said.