Tambaqui could become a Brazilian commodity in the global fish market, says study

A fish with high production of young, high growth rates, a mostly vegetarian diet, resistance to low amounts of oxygen in the water and with demand in the market is the dream of any fish farmer. Without major investments in innovation and genetic improvement, tambaqui (Colossoma macropomum) combined these characteristics and reached an annual production of 100 thousand tons in Brazil, second only to tilapia, with around 500 thousand tons. The difference is that the African species was the target of a large breeding program starting in the 1980s in Asia. The improved variety – known as GIFT (genetically improved breeding tilapia) – is produced today in 14 countries, including Brazil, which also has a chain of companies dedicated to the research and development of products aimed at this market. Due to its natural characteristics, tambaqui, a fish native to Amazonian rivers, is pointed out by researchers as having a potential in the market not only national, but also global, and can ...