Deputy Agriculture Minister Orders Intensified Tilapia Control Efforts Across All Provinces to Combat Black Chin Tilapia Outbreak

Deputy Agriculture Minister Watcharapol Khwaokhum announced urgent measures at the Department of Fisheries on May 22, 2026, to combat the black chin tilapia outbreak that continues to spread across multiple regions. While the Department of Fisheries has maintained ongoing control measures and daily situation reports, the minister emphasized the need for intensified efforts given the direct impact on communities. He outlined three primary strategies: maximizing efforts to contain the spread, accelerating eradication of the invasive species, and maximizing the value of captured fish through processing and utilization. Directors, deputy directors, and provincial fisheries officials have been instructed to implement these measures immediately without delay.

"This is an urgent matter with direct impact on the public," Watcharapol stated. "I have ordered administrators and provincial fisheries officials in high-risk areas—including Samut Sakhon, Samut Songkhram, Samut Prakan, Chonburi, and Rayong—to deploy and implement control measures every day without any flexibility in timelines to stop the outbreak as quickly as possible."

The ministry is also promoting the processing of black chin tilapia into various products including sun-dried fish, fish sauce, and fermented fish paste, as well as biological fertilizer production, which has received positive responses from farmers in multiple provinces. Watcharapol confirmed that the fish is safe for regular consumption with a taste no different from regular tilapia. The government aims to promote full utilization to reduce the impact of the outbreak while generating income for communities. Additionally, the ministry continues to monitor progress on population control efforts using sterile chromosome 4n tilapia, an initiative previously launched in Phetchaburi Province.