SITE MAP Free News
April 21, 2006
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The Oceanic Institute Will Deliver Technology Package on Shrimp Farming in 2006
Four years ago, with funding from the USA Department of Commerce, the Oceanic Institute established a joint-venture team to develop an environmentally sustainable and economically viable production system for farming shrimp in the USA.
The Team
Sygen [in October 2005, sold to Genus, Plc., a cattle breeder in the United Kingdom]
Zeigler Bros., Inc. [a shrimp/aquaculture feed company in Pennsylvania, USA]
Kahuku Shrimp Company [a small shrimp hatchery/farm in Hawaii, USA]
The Oceanic Institute [a nonprofit, private research institute in Hawaii, USA]
At "Aquaculture America 06", Oceanic Institute researchers reported: To date, we have completed growout trials where we have stocked shrimp at densities greater than 700 shrimp/m3 and we have produced shrimp at a biomass that approaches 9 kilograms shrimp/m3.
Before the end of 2006, the joint-venture team anticipates that it will have an integrated technology package available for the private sector for producing a stable and abundant supply of high-quality, pathogen free shrimp at low cost.
Source: The CD of the Aquaculture America 2006 and Marine Ornamentals '06 Abstracts. An Integrated Approach to the Development of Biosecure, Zero-exchange Shrimp Production Technology (BioZEST). Shaun M. Moss (smoss@oceanicinstitute.org), Clete A. Otoshi, Carolyn M. Holl, Mike Grey, Joe Tabrah and Tim Hering (The Oceanic Institute, 41-202 Kalanianaole Highway, Waimanalo, Hawaii 96795 USA). Information: John Cooksey, World Aquaculture Conference Management, P.O. Box 2302, Valley Center, CA 92082 USA (phone 760-751-5005, fax 760-751-5003, email worldaqua@aol.com, webpage www.was.org).
Shrimp Feed Production in Southeast Asia
Zuridah Merican, Editor/Publisher of Aqua Culture Asia Pacific magazine, reports:
In 2005, according to industry sources, the estimated production of marine shrimp feed in Southeast Asia was 1.8 million metric tons, compared to 1.63 million tons in 2004.
China's feed production of 525,000 tons was based on an estimated shrimp production of 350,000 tons and a feed conversion ratio of 1.5. The top 10 feed mills in southern China produced an estimated 292,000 tons of shrimp feed in 2005.
In Indonesia, an estimated 240,000 tons of shrimp feed were sold on the open market in 2005. [The big integrated farms in southeast Sumatra have their own feed mills, so their sales may not show up in the statistics.]
Published figures for Taiwan's shrimp feed production totaled 45,000 tons in 2004, mainly for Penaeus monodon. Figures for 2005 are not available but are estimated at the 2004 level.
In Malaysia, CP Asia Aquaculture will start production at its new shrimp and fish feed mill in March 2006, mainly to meet the demand for P. vannamei feeds.
In southern Vietnam, Grobest, UNI, President, Vietnam's Fish and Shrimp Factory and Cargill produce shrimp feeds. Grobest, with 25% of the market, plans to build three shrimp hatcheries and begin supplying postlarvae to farmers. In June 2005, it increased its production capacity for shrimp feed by 20%. In China, Malaysia and Thailand, Grobest is involved in the supply chain from farming to processing.
Source: Aqua Culture Asia Pacific (Editor/Publisher, Zuridah Merican, email zuridah@aquaasiapac.com, webpage www.aquaasiapac.com). Better Sales of Shrimp Feeds and Expansion into Fish Feeds. Zuridah Merican. Volume 2, Number 2, Page 14, March/April 2006.
Country Reports
Ecuador
Aqua Bounty's IMS Approved
Headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, USA, Aqua Bounty Technologies, a biotechnology company focused on health and productivity applications in the fast-growing aquaculture sector, has received regulatory approval for Shrimp IMS, its lead product, in Ecuador. Ecuador is the second country to approve the product, following Mexico.
An initial commercial shipment of Shrimp IMS has been made to Aqua Bounty's licensee in Ecuador, Karakoram, a South American pharmaceutical supplier working to distribute Shrimp IMS in cooperation with Exportachura de Alimentos S.A. ("Expalsa"), the leading aqua feed manufacturer in Ecuador.
Aqua Bounty plans to introduce IMS to six Latin American shrimp producing countries during 2006 with additional product launches in Asian markets planned for 2007.
Shrimp IMS is a feed additive administered through the full shrimp life cycle that reduces mortality by enhancing the animal's natural immune system; the shrimp's disease-fighting haemocyte production is increased by up to 250 percent. In field trials conducted over several years in Mexico and Ecuador, the Aqua Bounty has confirmed that Shrimp IMS is effective in the presence of a number of common shrimp diseases, including the Taura Syndrome and White Spot viruses, both implicated in the catastrophic $280-million collapse of the Ecuadorian shrimp industry in 1999. White Spot virus, in particular, has caused over $1 billion of production losses in the Americas since the 1990s. It is the most lethal, widespread viral disease of shrimp. The trials demonstrated survival improvements of 70-to-80 percent over untreated populations.
In Mexico, during the first year of commercial use, benefits to farmers were calculated at $2.50 return on investment per dollar spent on treatment.
"Ecuador has done a remarkable job rebuilding its position in the shrimp market since the loss of production in the late 1990s," said Elliot Entis, CEO of Aqua Bounty Technologies. "It is again among the top farmed shrimp exporters in the western hemisphere and an important supplier to the USA market."
Aqua Bounty Technologies is a Boston-based biotechnology company selling diagnostic tools, feed additives and therapeutants to the global aquaculture industry. Pipeline products include viral blockers, antifungals, fish vaccines and transgenic salmon, trout and tilapia that grow more quickly than standard farmed fish.
Corporate Information: Joseph McGonigle, Aqua Bounty Technologies, 935 Main Street, Waltham, MA 02451 USA (email eentis@aquabounty.com, phone 781-899-7755.)
Product Information: Henry Clifford, Vice President of Marketing and Sales, Aqua Bounty Technologies, Inc., 8355 Aero Drive, Lab 17, San Diego, CA 92123 USA (phone 858-467-6675, fax 858-467-6571, email hclifford@aquabounty.com).
Source: Email to Shrimp News International from Daniel de Belder (ddebelder@bell-pottinger.co.uk) at Bell Pottinger Corporate and Financial. Subject: Aqua Bounty launches lead shrimp product in Ecuador. April 18, 2006.
Iceland
Geothermal Freshwater Prawns
In a multimillion dollar deal, New Zealand Prawns Limited, which runs the only geothermal prawn farm in the world, has sold a 50 percent interest in its technology to the Iceland Government. Iceland hopes to utilize its geothermal and freshwater resources to grow freshwater prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii).
Richard Klein, co-owner of New Zealand Prawns, says the new partners have just completed a pilot program in Iceland and proven that they can hatch prawns under local conditions. He says they are now building the first commercial prawn farm in Iceland. He says the farm will single-handedly produce enough prawns to supply the entire restaurant industry of Iceland.
On April 11, 2003, the Shrimp News Website carried this item on New Zealand Prawns:
"New Zealand--Catch and Cook: Prawn Park is the only geothermal prawn farm/tourist attraction in the world. At Prawn Park, you can hand-feed juvenile prawns (Macrobrachium rosenbergii), catch adult prawns for onsite cooking, sample prawn dishes at the park's restaurant and visit Grumpy, the longest prawn in captivity. Park tours depart at 11:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. A family pass (two adults and up to four children under 13) is $7.00; one adult ticket is $3.25; one child ticket is $0.80 and a senior citizens ticket is $2.75. The park's restaurant is open daily from 9:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and offers a special children's menu."
"Information: Prawn Park, Huka Falls Road, Wairakei Park, Taupo, New Zealand (phone 64-7-374-8474, fax 64-7-374-8063, email info@prawnpark.co.nz, webpage www.prawnpark.co.nz)."
Sources: 1. TMCnet (full-service media company specializing in the communications and high-technology marketplace). Taupo company secures deal to develop Iceland prawn farms after years of talks (http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2006/04/11/1559727.htm). April 11, 2006. 2. The New Zealand Herald (newspaper, New Zealand). Prawn in hot pool (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/travel/travelstorydisplay.cfm?storyID=3301245&thesection=travel&thesubsection=whatson&thesecondsubsection=). Victoria Bartle. March 31, 2003.
Indonesia
Transshipments
On April 12, 2006, the custom services of Indonesia and the United States agreed to exchange information on the export and import of commodities prone to transshipment--like shrimp. A draft Memorandum of Understanding to that effect has been drawn up and should be signed in the next three to four months. Mari E. Pangestu, Indonesian Trade Minister, was asked if this would ease the problem of transshipment of Chinese shrimp through Indonesia. She said as an initial step the cooperation was "quite positive".
Source: Seafood.com (an online, subscription-based, fisheries news service). Indonesia's and U.S. customs services will cooperate to curb transshipment. Ken Coons. Editor and Publisher, John Sackton (phone 781-861-1441, email jsackton@seafood.com). April 13, 2006.
South Africa
SeaArk Africa
SeaArk Africa--a 50/50 joint venture between SeaArk Holdings Incorporated of the USA and the Bosasa Group of Companies of South Africa--has been formed to develop mariculture facilities in Africa and the Middle East. The company's first pilot project will be at a government-owned industrial park in Eastern Cape Province, at the mouth of the Coega River, north of Port Elizabeth. Over the next six years, it could grow into a $600 million project creating over 4,000 jobs.
SeaArk Holdings Incorporated is a member of the Fausel Foundation of the USA, while Bosasa is a diversified, broad-based, black economic empowerment group of companies that provides management services. Bosasa's chief executive officer is Gavin Watson, a Port Elizabeth businessman.
SeaArk Africa plans to conduct an environmental impact assessment on Penaeus vannamei. It maintains captive broodstock at a hatchery in the Bahamas. Its operation will be based on "a world-class proprietary indoor biosecure production facility" to be constructed on 1,100 hectares. SeaArk says the venture will include processing, packing and distribution functions and should be completed by 2011.
Sources: 1. The Herald Online (newspaper, Port Elizabeth, South Africa). R3,6-billion seafood project for Coega (http://www.theherald.co.za/herald/news/n01_10042006.htm). Patrick Cull, Political Editor. April 10, 2006. 2. Coega Development Corporation Website (http://www.coega.co.za/). Home Page. April 12, 2006.
Thailand
Production Down in 2006
On April 11, 2006, Thai shrimp processors said exports may fall by 25 percent in 2006, due to floods that inundated shrimp farms in the country's southern region in late 2005.
Somsak Paneetatyasai, president of the Thai Shrimp Association, said the government should give emergency assistance to at least 1,900 shrimp farmers in southern Thailand that had a combined loss of 10,000 tons of shrimp. He said lower production was likely for the first quarter of 2006, adding "The cost of investment for Thai prawn farmers has soared to the highest levels in five years."
The strength of the bhat and the weakness of the dollar will also limit exports to the USA.
Source: MCOT News (a global television network). Thai shrimp exports down by 25% this year (http://etna.mcot.net/query.php?nid=8104). April 11, 2006.
United States
New Jersey-Chris Denmark
Chris Denmark, former operations manager for Sea Farms International in Venezuela, has joined Expac Seafood, a seafood importer, as director of purchasing for Latin America.
Information: Chris Denmark, Director of Procurement-Latin America, Expack Seafood, Inc., One Woodbridge Center, Suite 915, Woodbridge, NJ 07095 USA (phone 561-706-2597, email cdenmark@expack.com, webpage www.expack.com.)
Source: SeaFood Business (www.seafoodbusiness.com). Editor, Fiona Robinson (frobinson@divcom.com). People in the News. V-25, N-4, P-3, April 2006.
Vietnam
Huge Investment
Vietnam plans to invest $1 billion in aquaculture from 2006 to 2010.
Source: Vietnam Net Bridge. Minister: antibiotic control requires drastic measures (http://english.vietnamnet.vn/biz/2006/04/560549/). April 14, 2006.
Vietnam
Shrimp Continue to Die
According to fisheries officials in Ca Mau Province, almost half the shrimp farms in the province, some 97,000 hectares of ponds, had 80 percent of their shrimp wiped out in early 2006. Dry weather, an outdated water supply system and poor management all played a role in the mortalities.
Other provinces in the Mekong Delta and some southwestern provinces also reported mass mortalities. Kien Giang Province reported a 70 percent loss in some areas, and Tra Vinh Province reported losses of 50 percent.
As a result, shrimp prices have skyrocketed to $11.30–$12.5 from $8.80–$9.40.
Source: Thanhnien News.com (the flagship publication of the Vietnam National Youth Federation). Shrimp die en masse in southern Vietnam farms (http://www.thanhniennews.com/business/?catid=2&newsid=14359). Tuoi Tre (translated by Ha Viet). April 11, 2006.