The export of shrimp from Venezuela to Holland, France and Spain, but with greater emphasis to China, could insert the country into the Top 10 of the largest exporters in the world this year.

According to Arnaldo Figueredo, executive director of the Venezuelan Aquaculture Society, the country currently has more than 19,000 hectares of shrimp ponds, distributed among some 700 farms.

“The farms have been able to survive and grow despite the economic difficulties, they belong to just over a dozen private companies,” allowing the export of around 95% of their production.

According to Figueredo, production has become more intensive, with farms growing between 50,000 and 300,000 shrimp per hectare. “Meanwhile, the time needed for specimens to reach maturity has been reduced. Before, the fattening cycle was longer, between four and five months, but now, to try to speed up production and detect any problems, a shorter cycle is used: A pre-breeding cycle and another fattening cycle, which usually last two and a half months each,” he explained.

According to data from 2023, shrimp achieved the sixth-largest export volume of Venezuelan commodities by value, which represented USD 214 million.

Recognition granted to Venezuelan shrimp farms

It is worth mentioning that eleven Venezuelan shrimp companies have obtained certification from the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), which is one of the main global organizations in the sector. The certification they grant is based on the evaluation of companies taking into account aspects such as “the well-being of workers, community involvement, resource efficiency and environmental responsibility.”

In this sense, marine biologist Robert Tenia, head of production between 2018 and 2022 at Inmarlaca, the largest shrimp farm in the country, received four visits from certifiers. “They checked the working conditions, where the workers slept, what the dining rooms were like, the state of the surrounding mangroves, the water replacement filters and that there were no escapes of animals from the pools to natural areas.”

M.Pino

Source: eldiariodeguayana

(Reference image source: Anthony Camp in Unsplash)

Visit our news channel on Google News and follow us to get accurate, interesting information and stay up to date with everything. You can also see our daily content on Twitter and Instagram

La entrada Venezuela could enter the Top 10 largest shrimp exporters in the world apareció primero en Bitfinance.