| The industry has been hit hard by antibiotic problem and the muddy-moldy odour associated with the shrimp due to which seafood exporters in the state have not been able to secure bulk export orders from major importing countries like the European Union, Japan and the US. |
| "Seafood exporters in the state reduced the purchasing prices by Rs 30-40 per kg due to the slowdown in shrimp exports at the beginning of the current season. This was followed by the recent slash in prices by Rs 20-25 per kg. This apart, problems like antibiotic and the muddy-moldy smell too have been showing on the prices ," Viswanadha Raju, president of Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI), Andhra Pradesh region, told Business Standard. |
| According to him, shrimp production in the first crop this fiscal was delayed by about 40 days due to last year's tsunami. The productivity, however, has increased by 30-40 per cent as more seeds were spread in the farms. |
| "Earlier, aqua farmers used to spread seven to eight shrimp seeds per square metre. But this season, most of the farmers spread 10-15 seeds per square metre, which increased the productivity to 3 tonnes per hectare as compared to around 2 tonnes in the previous season," Raju said. |
| The industry now is expecting about 60,000 tonnes of black tiger shrimp from the state during the first crop as compared to 50,000 tonnes during last year's first crop. |
| Raju said that, for the first time, several seafood exporters from neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu, Orissa, Karnataka, Gujarat, Kerala and Goa are entering Andhra Pradesh for purchasing black tiger shrimp to meet their export obligations. |
| "Unfortunately, these domestic exporters too are not willing to pay attractive prices to the local aqua farmers. Currently, exporters are paying Rs 165 per kg of 30 count shrimp and Rs 220 per kg of 40 count shrimp as compared to Rs 180 and Rs 240 paid two weeks back," Raju said. |
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