December 17, 2007

Iran's Bousher province reports 87 percent dip in shrimp production
 

This year's shrimp production in Boushehr province in Iran dived to 800 tonnes from 6,000 tonnes, an 87-percent slump year-on-year.

Eskandar Golestani, executive of the Union of Shrimp Growers of Bousher, said that although there were fields in the Iranian province for growing over 12 thousand tonnes of shrimp, this number was reduced by 92 percent compared to the past year.

Two hundred tonnes of the produced shrimp have been exported to the countries of Dubai, Kuwait and Egypt, Golestani said.

Lack of imports and production organs, fixed level of foreign exchange values, diseases' prevalence and reduced global price of shrimp have decreased the production of the commodity since 2003, he explained.

The growers owe over IRR500 billion (US$53.6 million) to the banks and cannot afford them with the current situation.