June 1, 2012

India to revive Black Tiger shrimp farming

Black Tiger shrimp farming is being planned to be revived by the Indian government by roping in global companies.

This variety was marketed as 'brand India seafood' before the outbreak of a viral attack - white spot syndrome - that cleaned up its population in some parts of the country in 90s.

"We are exploring partnership with global entities for the culture and domestication of Black Tiger shrimp," said a senior official of animal husbandry and fisheries department. "Firms from Hawaii and Thailand have shown interest; we are evaluating their credentials. We want them to introduce seeds that can increase the yield of Black Tiger shrimps, which is as low as 0.5-1 tonne a hectare."

This variety, also known as giant tiger prawns, is the most popular item in the Asian, European, and American markets. But the higher cost of production and its vulnerability to marine diseases forced domestic hatcheries to switch over to higher-yielding varieties like White Leg shrimps, which produce 5-10 tonnes per hectare.

India had been the only producer of Black Tiger variety, a native to the Indian and Pacific Ocean. Its reintroduction into the country's aquaculture farms is likely to boost the shrimp exports, which are growing at a rate of 20-22% annually.

"In 2009-10, India exported around 6.78 lakh tonne shrimps. It grew to eight lakh tonnes in 2010-11, earning foreign exchange worth INR12,901 crore (US$2.3 billion). In the last fiscal year, the export is likely to be around 10 lakh tonnes. We expect the trend to continue in the current fiscal year also," said another official of the department.

Shrimps, which tops the list of favourite seafood, is exported to the US, EU, China and Japan. The government is now exploring new markets to fuel the exports.