Shrimp farmers in no-win situation
Farmers who've cultivated black tiger shrimp for the export markets in the hope of earning profits were dealt with a massive blow by the coronavirus pandemic, which includes shattered their dreams by devastating the supply chain and prompting a collapse in demand.
More than 8 lakh farmers cultivate shrimp on 2.72 lakh hectares in the southwestern coastal region and offer the produce to the European and the US markets to make a living.
The prices of a fresh harvest of black tiger shrimp halved to Tk 300-360 each kilogram at the farm level this month from a year earlier as the coronavirus ate up demand from buyers abroad.
"Exporters have minimal appetite for shrimp this season and we must sell that at very low prices. The coronavirus has thrown us into deep trouble," said Tipu Hawlader, a shrimp grower in Mongla under Bagerhat district, one of the major shrimp-producing areas.
April to October comprises the primary season of shrimp as farmers harvest crops.
Farmed shrimp contributed 48 per cent to the full total shrimp and prawn production of 2.54 lakh tonnes in fiscal 2017-18. Bangladesh shipped 36,200 tonnes of shrimp in the same year, showed data from the fisheries department.
Shrimp export has been declining since fiscal 2013-14 as buyers choose cheaper alternatives vanammei weighed against the expensive black tiger and freshwater prawn types of shrimp grown in Bangladesh.
Shipment declined 2.31 % year-on-year to $291 million in July-March amount of this fiscal year, data from the Export Promotion Bureau showed.
"Initially, we were told to delay shipment. Later, many cancelled orders. Now, whatever the sales we see are from Japan," said Kazi Belayet Hossain, president of the Bangladesh Frozen Foods Exporters Association (BFFEA).
The association estimates that buyers from Europe and the US have up to now cancelled almost 300 orders amounting to Tk 460 crore.
"And the rate we are receiving now is significantly less than what we got at the moment last year," Hossain said.
Prices of larger size shrimps are $4.5-$4.80 per pound, down 20 per cent from $4.80 this past year.
"But the same quality shrimps are sold at higher prices in the domestic market," he added.
Consumption of shrimp low in the markets such as the UK.
It has caused a decline in the costs, said Atiqur Rahman, executive director of the National Seafood Industries.
"If the reduced prices persist, it'll be very tough for farmers to sustain for the reason that domestic market isn't big enough to take all of the shrimp grown and ensure rewarding charges for growers."
Only a couple of processing plants that produce exportable shrimp are buying now, according to Didarul Alam Dulal, a shrimp farmer and depot owner.
Shrimps also can not be transported smoothly to two major markets -- Dhaka and Chattogram -- due to the ongoing lockdown and limited opening hours of markets.
"All involved with this sector are affected if the lockdown continues," Dulal said.
