December 14, 2006

Freshwater prawn farming gains ground in northern Iran

Freshwater prawn farming, especially the Giant River variety is booming as it is slowly becoming a popular seafood in Iran.

The Sepid-Rud Fisheries Research Site in Astaneh Ashrafiyeh, 35 kilometres north-east of the provincial capital Rasht, as a pioneer of the industry, has recently set a 1,825-kilogramme per hectare production record.

Giant River Prawn larvae were caught from the Anzali Wetland and the Aras Dam reservoir and were grown in nurseries before being transferred into grow-out ponds, where they reach marketable size.