Paving the
Way to Global Shrimp Standards
BERAKAS, 18 January 2007,
Thursday -
A United States-based consultancy firm has signed an agreement with
Brunei's Fisheries Department to help local shrimp producers raise
harvest volume and quality to meet global standards.
With assistance from
US-based Integrated Aquaculture International (IAI), Brunei can raise
annual shrimp production from under 400 metric tonnes at present to
1,000 metric tonnes, a level that is seen to create, for the sultanate's
shrimp farmers, a significant presence in export-markets, Dr George
Chamberlain, IAI's technical director, told The Brunei Times.
Under the three-year
contract, IAI experts and local shrimp farmers will study the entire
production process, including the marketing aspect and the "human
factor" involved, said Faizal Mohd Yacob, the Deputy Managing Director
of Semaun Holdings.
"It is crucial that people
we have in the system follow proper standardised processes .to further
harvest quality shrimps," he said.
Assistance from IAI is also
expected to help local shrimp farmers to harvest during the monsoon
season, which is usually the toughest time of the year for producers,
Chamberlain said in an interview in Mentiri.
Statistics from the
Fisheries Department show that in 2005 shrimp production from farms
owned by 13 producers totalled less than 400 metric tonnes, valued at
$3.16 million. Farms in the country cover - a total land area of 230
hectares. Annual global output is seven million metric tonnes.
The department attributes
the industry's low production to several factors, such as low production
capacity, and inconsistent and low quality production due to inefficient
pond management.
In November last year
Brunei delegates attended the Global Shrimp Outlook/Global Fish Outlook
2006 held in Miami, Florida in the US to gain exposure in the global
seafood market, network with other shrimp market players and keep
abreast with trends in the global shrimp market.
Under the department's long
term strategic plans up to 2025, the value of the aquaculture industry's
annual production is projected to reach up to $200 million per year. The
industry is expected to attain a sustainable level of production, with
230 hectares of land already developed for shrimp farming.
Among the objectives of the
project is to raise production to more than 100 million shrimp fries a
year, the production of big-sized tiger prawns for the global market, as
well as to push Brunei Darussalam to become a regional technological hub
for the production of SPF tiger prawns.
- Courtesy of
Borneo Bulletin -
