VIJAYAWADA: With an objective to conserve sea turtle populations in India through responsible turtle-friendly fishing practices, and to benefit fishermen catching wild shrimp and exporting the same, Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) in association with experts from NO AA Fisheries, USA and ICAR-Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (CIFT) organised workshops on Turtle Excluder Device ( TED ) construction and field demonstration in India, including Andhra Pradesh, from February 19 to 25.
In 2018, the US Department of State did not notify India as a certified nation for exporting wild-caught shrimp to the USA under Section 609 of US Public Law 101-162 as TED did not meet the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) specifications and the TED are not being used in mechanical trawlers in India. Before the ban, the USA was occupying 20 per cent of India’s overall exports of wild-caught shrimps. The ban on the export of wild-caught shrimp is causing a loss of around Rs 4,500 crore ($550 million).
The ban on Indian wildcaught shrimp exports has reduced the unit value realised from $9.87/kg to $5.68/kg, impacting the earnings of fishers and stakeholders in the allied sectors. The selling price of Black Tiger, White Shrimp, Flower Shrimp, Karikadi, and Poovalan shrimp at landing points have reduced by Rs 100- 200/kg following the US ban. MPEDA initiated steps to address the issue by assigning the project to ICAR-CIFT to modify TED. The CIFT modified the TED as per NOAA specifications and conducted field trials, which NOAA appreciated.
During December 2023 and January 2024, MPEDA organised three workshops in maritime cities, including Veraval, Mumbai, and Vizag, to sensitise the TED performance in Indian water. Following this, US NOAA Fisheries experts and US Department of State officials visited India to conduct a stakeholder workshop at CIFT Kochi from February 19 to 25 on TED construction and field demonstration in India.