KUCHING, April 23: The Tilapia Lake Virus (TiLV) disease has been detected in Sarawak, particularly in the Batang Ai cage farms.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas in a statement today, confirmed the matter, saying the virus has affected 0.09 per cent of the area.
This incident of TiLV is not an isolated case, as the disease has affected other states earlier this year.
Appearently, neighbouring countries in Thailand, Philippines and Indonesia were affected first, followed by Malaysia.
The first state to be affected was Perlis, followed by Kedah, Sarawak and now Negeri Sembilan.
“Effective today, we have banned the movement of all tilapia breeders and fry from Batang Ai and all surrounding related hatcheries.
“We would like to assure the public that the TiLV disease is not zoonotic (only affecting the fish) and does not affect humans. Therefore the tilapia fish from Batang Ai is safe for human consumption,” Uggah said.
