Seafood consumption could help fill nutrition gaps in Brazil

Seafood plays a vital yet underexplored role in addressing nutritional deficiencies in tropical countries. Despite Brazil's vast coastline and marine biodiversity, seafood contribution to human nutrition remains insufficiently quantified. Here we present a nationwide assessment of seafood's nutritional role in Brazil by integrating household-level dietary data (n > 30,000), nutrient composition of protein sources and fisheries statistics. We find that average seafood intake is below recommended levels, at 5.3 kg per capita per year, while nutritional deficiencies, including vitamin A and calcium deficiencies, remain widespread. Projections show that increasing seafood consumption from 6% to 25% of total protein intake could substantially reduce these deficiencies. However, seafood demand exceeds fisheries supply in several states, underscoring the limited potential to increase fishery catches and that targeting seafood consumption based on nutritional value could maximize health benefits. Our findings emphasize the role of marine resources in human nutrition and underscore the need for improved fisheries governance and sustainable seafood policies in Brazil.