Live fish have long been traded around Southeast Asia as a luxury food item. The fish are displayed alive in aquaria in restaurants and markets. Consumers select individual fish that are then cooked and served in a restaurant of choice, or the fish are taken home to be prepared fresh. Chinese communities are the main consumers and the principal demand centers are Hong Kong, China; mainland People’s Republic of China (PRC); and Taipei, China. Hong Kong, China, has become the main center where live fish are imported both for domestic consumption and for “re-export” to the PRC mainland. Although trade in live fish has a long history, live reef food fish (LRFF) entered the international trade in substantial numbers only in the late 1980s to early 1990s. Consumer preference is for one or more of such attributes as steaming well for best taste and texture; color—red is considered auspicious; and size—whether for a small family or a banquet. Some LRFF are particularly sought for the fine quality of their flesh. Another factor is time of year; demand and prices peak during traditional Chinese festivals. Wild fish are said to be preferred by consumers although taste tests indicate that it is difficult to distinguish wild from cultured fish. 1 Differences in these factors have resulted in a wide spread of prices. At retail, LRFF fetch from US $5 to $180 per kilogram (kg), considerably more than the price of similar dead reef fish. Table 1.1 shows some recent average retail prices in Hong Kong, China.