What is the most farmed fish in the world?

Carp are the most farmed fish group in the world.

Carp dominate global freshwater aquaculture, especially in China and other parts of Asia. The name covers several closely related farmed fish, including grass carp, silver carp, bighead carp, and common carp. Together, these species account for a huge share of farmed finfish production.

Carp are popular because they grow efficiently in ponds and tolerate a wide range of conditions. Different species can also use different food sources: grass carp eat vegetation, while silver and bighead carp filter feed on plankton. This allows farmers to raise several carp species together and make productive use of the same pond.

A useful distinction is that “carp” is a group answer rather than one single species. In recent FAO production statistics, grass carp is often the leading individual farmed fish species, while carp collectively remain the dominant category. Salmon and trout are important farmed fish, particularly in marine and temperate markets, but their global production is lower than that of carp species.