November 7, 2008

Indonesia's shrimp production for this year is expected to fall short of the 470,000 tonnes target set by the government due to declining demand.

This year's production is expected to reach only 350,000 tonnes, said Indonesian Shrimp Commission chairman Shidid Moeslim.

Last year, Indonesia's shrimp output also fell below target, reaching only 377,220 tonnes of the 410,000 tonnes target.

Production estimate is based on exports, which totalled only 120,000 tonnes in the first nine months of this year, according to newspaper Bisnis Indonesia.

The US and Japan are main importers of Indonesian shrimps, to which exports totalled 85,091 tonnes in the first eight months of 2008, down from 96,149 in the same period last year.