Indian seafood exports up against odds.
When India's overall exports went down by 2.85 per cent in the first five months of the current fiscal, marine exports continued to grow by 7.75 per cent, said Mr. K.B. Pillai, Chairman of the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA).
In value terms, for the five months ended August 1998 the growth was 22 per cent. To a figure of Rs. 1,881 crores as against Rs. 1,538 crores for the corresponding period last year. Despite the erosion in the value of the Indian currency, foreign exchange realization from seafood exports has shown a modest growth during this period. For the whole year in dollar terms the export earnings works out to $ 1.3 billion. This is the fourth successive year that marine exports had crossed the $one-billion mark.
In terms of volume, frozen fish was the largest exported item contributing 48.73 per cent of the total export. Frozen shrimp, in terms of value, declined to 26.26 per cent from 27.88 per cent the previous year. However, it continued to be the single largest foreign exchange earner, contributing 66.86 per cent of marine exports in value. This was followed by frozen fish with a share of 15.47 per cent, frozen cuttle fish with 6.88 per cent and squids with 5.77 per cent.
The Indian seafood industry has managed to overcome the problems which cropped up during the last one year, and established new markets in countries such as Kenya, Mexico, Uruguay, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and Israel, said Mr. A.J. Tharakan, President of the Seafood Exporters Association of India (SEAI).
European ban on the import of Indian seafood products had been lifted and a number of factories are now approved for shipment to the European Union. India took to the World Trade Organization (WTO) the US law on Turtle Excluder Device and won the first round.
This no way means the seafood industry is free from all trouble. A study on ``Marine products sector: At a glance'', by the Federation of Indian Export Organizations (FIEO), eastern region, says the sector is suffering from raw material shortage which has affected the country's performance in terms of production and exports.
Suggesting steps for popularizing eco-friendly aquaculture, the study has called for diversification of aquaculture through cage culture of fin-fish, Indian seabass, fresh water prawn (scampi) culture, culture of seaweeds, muscles and clams. Some of the other suggestions are: import of raw marine products for processing and re-export, popularization of the use of turtle extruder device in fishing vessels to avoid trade sanctions from developed countries and guidance through application engineering so that problems of fishermen are taken up by the research stations.
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