Silver carp (Hypophthalmichthys molitrixis) is one of the primary freshwater aquaculture fish species in China. Its filter-feeding habits on phytoplankton and its nutritional characteristics, such as rich protein content and high unsaturated fatty acid levels, contribute to its significant ecological and production value. Despite the long-standing use of feed coeffecient (FC) for evaluating silver carp productivity in natural water bodies like lakes and reservoirs, as well as assessing economic losses caused by sewage discharge in China, there is still no universally accepted standard value. Different scholars and official normative documents continue to present varying FC values, ranging from 20-50 to even 80 or 100. This paper aims to systematically review the historical origin and application progress of FC values adopted by the Chinese academic community while re-evaluating FC based on the concept of primary production required (PPR), aiming to identify reasons behind these discrepancies. The findings support using FC values between 20 and 50 but do not endorse values exceeding 80.