Pork retail prices have risen about 10 percent and the price of grouper -- a member of the sea bass family -- has soared to more than NT$200 per catty [600g] from NT$120 per catty before the bird flu outbreak.
"People's turning to fish as a source of protein is a good chance for Taiwan's aquaculture industry to promote exports of its quality fishes, including eel, grouper and tilapia," said Frank Chiang (江福松), executive director of the Taiwan Tilapia Association (台灣鯛協會).
Tilapia -- a freshwater fish -- made up a quarter of Taiwan's aquaculture production in 2002. Production was valued at NT$2.8 billion, with most of it exported to the US and Saudi Arabia.
A Chinese-language newspaper reported last week that McDonald's and KFC may consider using Taiwan's tilapia as their source of fish. Both companies denied the report, with McDonald's saying that they had no plans to replace cod with other kinds of fish.
Chiang said there had been some talks between the fast food chains and local fish exporters, but he didn't think they could cut a deal soon.
Instead, fish farmers should remodel the industry by building up certified tilapia aquaculture and processing zones in compliance with international standards, allowing them to market fish to other countries at higher prices, Chiang said.
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