White Tiger prawn overtakes Black

The demand for Black Tiger prawn is taking a beating from White Tiger prawn called 'Vanamai', which initially gained popularity in Japan and later spread to other countries.

Till recently, European Union, USA and countries such as China, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia were the major importers of Black Tiger prawns.

"Vanamai is becoming popular mainly because it resists diseases and weighs less than the Black Tiger. Moreover, it is relatively smaller in size and is cheaper than the Indian Black Tiger prawn," says M V Ramana Rao, secretary of the Exporters Association and managing director of Sri Chandrakantha Marine Exports. While a kg of White prawns costs $4, the Black comes at $6.

Bhimavaram town in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh is a hub of Black Tiger prawn culture with more than 30 shrimp exporting companies situated within a radius of 100 km.

Besides Bhimavaram, other places famous for Black Tiger prawns include Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram, Guntur and Nellore districts.

In all, about 60 producers and exporting companies dominate the exports from the state, which bring in foreign exchange to the tune of Rs 7,000 crore every year for the country.

"We account for a business turnover of nearly Rs 2,500 crore from the state but unlike China and Thailand, we do not have government patronage for this export-oriented business," U K Viswanandha Raju, president, Sea Food Exporters Association of India, AP chapter, and managing director of Ananda Foods, Bhimavaram, told Business Standard.

Andhra Pradesh produces one lakh tonnes of Black Tiger prawns in two crops during a year of which nearly 70% of the exports and production are from Bhimavaram. Japan is one country which has a craze for Black Tiger. The Japanese purchase a kilo of prawn for $14 from India.

However, production of Black Tiger has not increased during the last five years. According to Raju, Vanamai production in China increased from one lakh tonnes in 2000 to six lakh tonnes in 2004-05 fiscal, while the production of Black Tiger remained static.

At present, about 25,000 tonnes of the shrimp is exported from Andhra Pradesh. In 1985, 50 gm of prawn was sold at 90 paise. Today, the same is sold for Rs 3.25 and during peak season, it shoots up to Rs 5.50. The demand for seafood the world over is expected to touch 110-120 million tonnes annually by the year 2010.