After pressure from the agricultural sector, the government temporarily suspends the list that considered tilapia an invasive species.

The Official National List of Invasive Exotic Species, which included tilapia, was temporarily suspended by the National Biodiversity Commission (Conabio), from the Ministry of the Environment, according to a statement this Thursday (4). The announcement made in October generated concern among producers, who feared new restrictions on the breeding of the most cultivated fish in Brazil. A species is considered invasive when it starts to appear in places where it is not native. In this case, tilapia has been appearing in rivers outside of production areas, which causes environmental imbalances, according to the Ministry of the Environment. The "exotic" characteristic is because tilapia is not native to Brazil, but to the African continent, from the Nile River basin. That is why it is called "Nile Tilapia" and the scientific name is Oreochromis niloticus. According to the statement, the suspension will be to make new consultations to the sectors of the economy, "in order to define ...