© FAI
Run by FAI in partnership with Ethical Seafood Research (ESR) and officially launched in February 2024, the Tilapia Welfare Egypt project aims to provide Egyptian fish farmers with the tools and knowledge needed to assess and improve tilapia welfare and enhance fish performance. Over 120 Egyptians working in the nation’s burgeoning aquaculture sector have now successfully completed the training course.
“In collaboration with Aquavet Egypt and Kafrelsheikh University, we’ve successfully facilitated the rigorous training of over 120 [individuals] in the use of tilapia welfare assessment protocol and associated monitoring tools,” explained Wasseem Emam, founder, director, and head of research at ESR, in a press release.
“Improving tilapia welfare not only improves fish wellbeing, performance and farm profitability but also brings Egypt in line with other leading fish-producing countries and hopefully opens up new export opportunities,” they added.
The most recent workshops have focussed on developing both the theoretical and practical aspects of fish welfare that are necessary for a better understanding and monitoring of farmed tilapia welfare. As well as insightful lectures, trainees gained hands-on experience in the use of FAI’s Tilapia Welfare app, a user-friendly platform for assessing and managing the welfare of fish in a farm setting.
Over 200 copies of the Tilapia Welfare app have now been downloaded by users in Egypt, highlighting the growing interest in welfare on Egyptian tilapia farms and the growing success of the Tilapia Welfare Egypt project.
“It’s an important project to be involved with. Egypt is the top tilapia producer in Africa and one of the top three in the world, so it’s exciting to know there’s a new cohort of trainers working specifically to help promote and better support the implementation of welfare practices across the country,” said FAI’s chief operating officer Murilo Quintiliano.
