October 24, 2017

 

China has world's first crab farm to earn BAP certification

 

 

A Chinese aquaculture farm raising hairy crab has been granted the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification, becoming the world's first crab farm of any kind to earn the distinction, the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) has announced.

 

The Zhejiang Aoling Aquatic Seeding Technology Co. Ltd. hairy crab farm is located at Huzhou city, Zhejiang province. The crab is sold live domestically, mainly through the Internet.

 

"We are excited about bringing hairy crab into our BAP programme," said GAA Vice President Steve Hart. "What makes this even more exciting is that this is the first BAP-certified species that will be marketed live, directly to Chinese consumers".

 

He said buyers will receive a box of live crab with the BAP logo on the packaging, thus promoting responsible aquaculture directly to consumers.

 

Hairy crab (Eriocheir sinensis) is a medium-sized burrowing crab native to the rivers and estuaries of eastern Asia. It is named for its furry claws, which resemble mittens, and therefore is also known as Chinese mitten crab.

 

Hairy crab is a delicacy in eastern Chinese cuisine, particularly in Shanghai and Jiangsu province.

 

In addition to aquaculture feed, there are now 15 types of farmed seafood represented in the BAP programme--Arctic charr, barramundi, channel catfish, crawfish, golden pompano, hairy crab, mussels, pangasius, rainbow trout, salmon, sea bass, shrimp, steelhead trout, striped bass and tilapia.

 

So far, there are a total of 1,737 BAP-certified facilities in 31 counties and six continents, including 392 processing plants, 1,072 farms, 173 hatcheries and 95 feed mills.

 

BAP is the world's most comprehensive third-party aquaculture certification programme, with aquaculture standards encompassing environmental responsibility, social responsibility, food safety, animal health and welfare and traceability.

 

It's also the only programme to cover the entire aquaculture production chain--processing plants, farms, hatcheries and feed mills.

 

Hairy crab or Chinese mitten crab