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[Weekly King CTWANT] In Taiwan's eating habits, freshwater fish are often seen as having many bones, an earthy smell, and sometimes parasites, so people prefer to eat marine fish over freshwater fish. Recently, an Indonesian self-media used this as a topic and posted a video online, saying that "Taiwanese people do not eat freshwater fish, and believe that tilapia in the river should not be eaten." This is very different from the Indonesian habit of eating tilapia on a daily basis, sparking heated discussions among Indonesian netizens, and even local media joined the discussion.
An Indonesian netizen recently posted a video on social media, saying, "When Indonesians see tilapia in the river, they often catch it and eat it immediately. But Taiwanese people believe that this freshwater fish is "harmful to health and not suitable for consumption," so Taiwanese people generally do not eat freshwater fish." The account that posted the video has only 6,500 followers, but the video has accumulated more than one million hits in less than a week since it was uploaded. Thousands of Indonesian netizens left messages to discuss Taiwan's eating habits, and it also attracted reports from local media.
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On the 13th, the "Jatim Times" reported the incident with the title "Do Taiwanese really not eat freshwater fish? Hotly discussed on social media", pointing out that although the topic of Taiwanese not eating freshwater fish has sparked discussion on social networks, the Taiwanese government and authorities have not officially "banned" or "recommended" people not to eat freshwater fish, but it can be confirmed that Taiwanese people's eating habits do prefer marine fish.
The Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus), commonly known as the "Nile tilapia", is native to Africa, but has been introduced to many countries around the world for its strong adaptability to the environment. It is also a popular edible fish species among Indonesians, and is common on street vendors and restaurant menus. However, an Indonesian YT video pointed out that although the Nile tilapia is regarded as an economic fish that can bring income locally, its situation in Taiwan is completely different, because "Taiwanese people think that the Nile tilapia is a disgusting fish and is not liked because of the risk of infection with liver flukes."
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The Centers for Disease Control of the Ministry of Health and Welfare of Taiwan issued a press release in 2003, calling for attention to the fact that freshwater fish in Taiwan are often infected with liver flukes, so if people eat freshwater fish raw, they may be infected with Chinese liver flukes. Chinese liver flukes are mainly prevalent in mainland China, Taiwan, and Southeast Asian countries, and are one of the zoonotic parasitic infectious diseases.
An Indonesian netizen working in Taiwan left a message saying that Taiwanese people are reluctant to catch and eat freshwater fish because they believe that the rivers are polluted. Another netizen explained that "the Nile tilapia in Taiwan's rivers have reproduced in large numbers because they are not preyed on. They prefer to eat farmed fish and believe that this type of fish is safer and more suitable for consumption."
