January 5, 2023

As India's shrimp producers struggle with profitability, black tiger shrimp now in spotlight

India's shrimp industry is in crisis as, in the last two years, exports were affected due to the pandemic.

The industry is also impacted by high feed prices and the removal of subsidies. Farmers are now facing huge losses due to drastic drops in the farm gate prices of shrimp. Thus, government interference in price determination is needed.

While government leaders had earlier said that the price of 100 counts of prawns
will be ₹240 (US$2.96), this has not been the case. Furthermore, prices have fallen to ₹180-190/kg (US$2.22-2.34).

According to shrimp farmers, they cannot achieve profits if prices are lesser than ₹240. It is also important to note that the prices of shrimp feed have spiked in the last two years (the Indian government had since negotiated with feed companies and got prices reduced by ₹2.60/kg, or US$0.03).

Meanwhile, the revival of the black tiger shrimp market in India and other Asian countries may become the most important trend for the mid-term outlook on shrimp production. This is enabled by improvements in domestic SPF shrimp genetics and the establishment of required infrastructures like hatcheries. Instead of focusing on the capital-intensive production of Pacific white shrimp, farmers could now switch species and focus on the less capital-intensive production of black tiger shrimp.

The Indian shrimp industry hopes that production will increase from 220,000 tonnes in the 2022-2023 (April-March) period to almost 455,000 tonnes in 2026-2027. This could happen due to an increase in production areas from 60,000ha in 2022-2023 to 130,000ha in 2026-2027.

A large group of small-scale producers is expected to start the cultivation of black tiger shrimp in the country. However, it is a question of whether the market can sustain the price levels that these farmers need to maintain production.

Some markets, including France, pay higher prices for black tiger shrimp. Other major markets were the United States, northern Europe, Japan, Middle-east nations and China.

Hence, all stakeholders in India's shrimp market should work together to revitalise the potential of the market. This will be a win-win situation in the long term for both producers and consumers.

- Dr. Dinesh Bhosale