Macau, China, Oct. 24, 2025 (Lusa) - Brazil's national secretary for aquaculture told Lusa on Friday that the imposition of tariffs by the United States (US) has led the Brazilian fish and seafood sectors to seek new markets, including China.
"When it comes to fish exports, there is a lot of product being sent to the United States, and this, with the taxation, has forced us to think about other destinations," explained Fernanda Gomes de Paula.
Brazil and the US are experiencing an unprecedented diplomatic crisis after the US President imposed 50% tariffs on most Brazilian products.
Donald Trump justified the decision with the trial in which former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, an ally of the current US leader, was sentenced to 27 years and three months in prison for attempting a coup d'état.
"I strongly believe that we must always look on the bright side of every situation. So, this was a wake-up call, opening up an opportunity for us to seek other destinations for our products," she said.
Before the tariffs were imposed, around 70% of Brazilian fish exports were destined for the US, a figure that rises to 90% in the case of aquaculture.
Fernanda de Paula, whose office is under the supervision of the Brazilian Ministry of Fisheries and Aquaculture, argued that it is necessary to focus on fish and shrimp as products to "work commercially".
China has been Brazil's main trading partner for 15 years.
According to data from Chinese Customs Services, Brazilian exports fell 10.9% in the first eight months of 2025, to US$72.6 billion (€62.8 billion).
Brazil's national secretary for aquaculture argued that the country has the potential to export more fish and other aquatic products to the Chinese market.
"In fact, we need to show ourselves more, we need to understand the volume of our production, the quality of our products and demonstrate that we are able to include them here," she said in Macau.
The official was speaking on the sidelines of the closing ceremony of a colloquium on the digital economy between China and Portuguese Language Countries, which began on 13 October.
Fernanda de Paula said the event, organised by the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese Language Countries (Macau Forum), was "extremely important".
The aquaculture production chain "is undergoing a transition process to digitise and work with artificial intelligence" in order to improve management and increase productivity, she explained.
Brazil's national secretary for Aquaculture took the opportunity to "find out what is being discussed, what is being debated [and] make the right connections".
"We have a country that is open to collaboration. (...) We have something to offer, but we are humble enough to understand that we also have a lot to learn," she added.
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Lusa
