Their allegation was simple. These countries exported shrimp to the US at dirt-cheap prices and did so fully knowing that they were selling shrimp at below-normal prices. They were dumping excess produce in the US and affecting the livelihood of American fishermen. India, China, Vietnam, and Ecuador — They were all alleged to have played a part. (View Highlight)
And while these countries protested their innocence, the US Department of Commerce began its investigation nonetheless. They notified the International Trade Commission (ITC) of their decision and the ITC agreed that there was sufficient evidence to back the allegations. They admitted that local industry may have been hit hard by the cheap imports flooding its borders and the investigation eventually culminated in a range of duties. (View Highlight)
You see, India began modern shrimp farming in the late 1980s at a time when demand for shrimp was on the rise. This demand mostly came in from the US and the government began framing policies to promote seafood exports. This also helped companies pool in capital to build hatcheries, farms and processing plants. (View Highlight)
And shrimp farming suited us quite well. Our production costs were low. Labour — readily accessible and we also had huge land parcels. Rice farmers along the coasts of Kerala and Andhra Pradesh could rotationally engage in shrimp farming and it was only a given that shrimp farming would take off in a big way considering the massive coastline we boast. (View Highlight)
The Indian government also doubled down on this optimism and offered subsidies so farmers could invest in processing facilities, equipment and local breeding programs. (View Highlight)
But then in the 2000s, there was the virus and the US anti-dumping investigation and it threatened to throw India off its perch. Now this sounds pretty bad. But here’s what we didn’t tell you. Despite all this, India continues to remain the second largest shrimp exporter globally after Ecuador. (View Highlight)
A disease breakout in 2009 named the Early mortality syndrome (EMS) ruined Black Tiger Shrimp farms all over China, Thailand and Vietnam — who happened to be the largest producers at the time. In the same year, the Indian Government allowed for the cultivation of a “new” variety of shrimp called the Vannamei (Pacific White Shrimp). These new shrimps were more disease resistant than their black tiger counterparts and could be cultivated using less feed, significantly easing the burden on the Indian shrimp farmers. This move prompted a nationwide shift in shrimp cultivation as more farmers got in on the act. Soon shrimp exports started rising and today, they contribute nearly 67% of India’s seafood exports as compared to just a tiny percentage in FY10 when the white leg prawn culturing had just begun. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t end here either. (View Highlight)
Even though we are still the second-largest exporter of shrimp in the world, things have been a bit topsy turvy these past few years. There’s been a steady increase in shrimp feed (shrimp food) prices. There are supply chain troubles. And production costs have been going up. In fact, in Surat production costs have gone up by 35% while shrimp prices have gone down by about 25%. (View Highlight)
