Ca Mau banks on seafood exports

The southernmost province of Ca Mau targets seafood export revenues in excess of US$1 billion per year by 2015, local officials have said.

In a report carried by the Econet news bulletin on August 18, they said the province plans an annual aquaculture output of 450,000 tonnes by then, including 170,000 tonnes of shrimp.

To meet these targets, the province will develop aquaculture cultivation in all types of water, focusing on extensive, industrial and organic shrimp breeding using advanced technology to ensure high output.

The different models of shrimp cultivation are applied due to different characteristics in area, investment, shrimp feed, and the technology selected.

The breeding of giant freshwater prawns will be developed in the northern part of the province under various models like shrimp-rice and shrimp-forest cultivation.

In the districts of U Minh, Thoi Binh and Tran Thoi as well as Ca Mau City, the breeding of freshwater fish would be revived and developed, the report said.

The province will also invest in developing different models to breed the giant mottled eel and marble goby fish.

The Econet report said that the province now breeds different varieties of fish on 32,000ha.

Industrial shrimp

Ca Mau will increase its industrial shrimp breeding area to 10,000ha by 2015, the provincial People’s Committee has said.

The province now has 265,153ha devoted to shrimp breeding, of which, the extensive model accounts for 263,713ha and industrial breeding for just 1,440ha.

The average output of extensive breeding is only 0.35 tonnes per hectare while the average output in industrial shrimp breeding farms reaches five tonnes per hectare.

The People’s Committee has issued a draft plan for developing industrial shrimp breeding zones in the province.

Under the plan, each industrial breeding zone will have an area of more than 50ha. In places where there are geographical and area limitations, such zones will have an area of at least 30ha.

Favourable conditions would be created for developing industrial shrimp breeding, including irrigation projects, power supply and roads, local officials said. — VNS

Tags: Vietnam Seafood, Vietnam seafood exports