HCM City (VNS/VNA) - Minister ofAgriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong has ordered provinces andcities to focus on ensuring farmers raise shrimp using proper breedingprocesses and advanced techniques.

Speaking at a seminar held in Bac Lieu provinceon June 3 on measures to develop the shrimp sector sustainably, he urgedprovinces and cities to set up sustainable shrimp farming areas and ensure cooperationbetween farmers and processors and others in the production chain.

Farmers raise brackish shrimp on 637,000ha,slightly up from last year, including 582,000ha of black tiger shrimp and54,500ha of white-legged shrimp, according to the Directorate of Fisheries.

In the first five months of this year atotal of 200,000 tonnes of shrimp were harvested, an increase of 11.1 percentyear-on-year.

White-legged shrimp accounted for theincrease in both area and output, the directorate said. 

Nhu Van Can, head of the directorate’sdepartment of aquaculture, said the shrimp sector faced several difficulties.

Their exports came up against technicalbarriers put up by importing countries and there were not enough marketforecasts, he said.

The price of white-legged shrimp has fallenby 10,000 VND – 30,000 VND a kilogramme since April, according to thedirectorate.

Higher output in major shrimp producingcountries and lower imports by major importers have been a double whammy,according to the Vietnam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers(VASEP).

Truong Dinh Hoe, VASEP General Secretary,said the price of raw shrimp, especially the white-legged variety, was notlikely to increase by much this year.

Le Van Su, Deputy Chairman of the Ca Mau provincialPeople’s Committee, said the price of black tiger shrimp was steady and 40 percenthigher than that of white-legged shrimp.

The price of black tiger shrimp remainshigh since 2011.

The crustacean fetches 225,000 VND –250,000 VND a kilogramme if it is of a size that makes 30 to a kilogramme. 

Participants at the seminar agreed thatfarming of white-legged shrimp should be reduced in terms of both area andoutput this year, and that farmers needed to adopt techniques that helpedreduce costs.

They should focus on black tiger shrimp andcontrol shrimp diseases, they said.

Cuong called on the directorate and otherrelevance agencies to efficiently forecast market conditions and warn farmersif their output seems likely to exceed demand.

The market would revive and so farmersshould not panic and sell immature shrimp, he said.

“Shrimp processors should share in farmers’difficulties and consider them long-term partners.”

He instructed agencies under his ministryto work with provinces and cities to help farmers adopt advanced techniques.

The ministry would work with other relevantministries and sectors to resolve problems related to processing,infrastructure and prices to ensure the sustainable development of the shrimpsector, he promised.

Dead in the water

Meanwhile, in Long An province, farmers aresuffering huge losses.

Losing millions of dong, shrimp farmers inLong An like Truong Thanh Nhan suspended their farming to avoid debt, accordingto Nong Thon Ngay Nay (Countryside Today) newspaper.

In Nhan’s farm, ponds once filled withshrimps and aeration propellers are now deserted.

“Diseases wiped out most of my shrimp aftersolely a month farming. When I collected the leftovers, the prices were too lowto make my investment back, let alone profit,” Nhan said.

He lost 200 million VND (8,800 USD) aftertwo crop failures.

Le Van Hiep, a trader in Long An, saidprices ranged from 70,000 VND (3.07 USD) to 105,000 VND (4.6 USD). Nhan claimed“if the financial values of shrimps stayed anchored at this rate — the lowestin three years’ time, I will cease cultivating shrimps.”

Shrimp farmers in Phuoc Lai commune hadsuspended operation, Nguyen Cong Danh, Vice Chairman of the commune’s People’sCommittee, reported.

Their counterparts in Tan Chanh hamlet, thebiggest feeding resource area for shrimps, were also said to be mullingsuspending the farming of more than 100ha out of 850ha of shrimp ponds,according to Nguyen Trong Tuyen, Vice President of Tan Chanh hamlet.

Pham Phu Hung, Deputy Executive ofAgriculture Extension Centre in Long An, attributed the cause to the lowfinancial value of crops compared with high-priced inputs, which resulted inmassive losses for farmers.

“If the prices for crops went up, farmerswould continue growing shrimps at the drop of a hat,” he noted.

Dong Quang Don, Manager of Agriculture andRural Development in Can Giuoc district agreed, suggesting farmers continuetheir work at a steadily low pace to sustain the ponds and minimise marketprice risks. In the long-term, Don said cutting edge technology should beapplied in shrimp farms.

A spread of infections for shrimps wasanother reason for crop failure, Pham Phu Hung added, so farmers should onlycount on credited shrimp breed sellers for input and renovate their pondscarefully.

Vietnam’s shrimp exports to the US are inintense competition with India, according to cafef.vn, while traders werereported to only buy small prawns while refusing to take large shrimps.

Farmers all over Mekong Delta are facingthe same issue, suspending their operation after their investment turned noprofit, hoping for a rise in prices.-VNS/VNA