MPEDA launches certification system for aquaculture

The Marine Products Export Development Authority on Friday launched a certification system for aquaculture that it claimed guarantees quality shrimp Post Larvae (PL) and authenticates their quality in the highly competitive international market.

Called Shaphari,the 'Antibiotic-free Certification' is the end-to-end solution that enables MPEDA audit Post Larvaes offered by hatcheries across the country, said Kerala Governor Shri Arif Mohammad Khan.

He was speaking after inaugurating the three day 22nd India International Seafood Show (ISSS), organised by MPEDA, the nodal agency of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and the Seafood Export Association of India (SEAI).

The Governor said the move comes in the context of top world bodies having identified a rapid evolution of drug- resistant bacteria called super bugs, he added.

He pointed out that since WHO and the UN have identified the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria strains as a high-priority public health concern, farmers in India are bound to buy antibiotic free Post Larvaes from hatcheries certified by a governing body.

The entire certification process will be online in tune with the e-governance programme of the Government of India.

There are various certifications systems like MSC and BAP which are otherwise offshore certification processes, unaffordable to the small and marginal Indian farmers.

The present initiative will make the certification scheme affordable to the small and marginal aqua farmers in India.

He said the entire process has been designed to guarantee cent per cent healthy products to boost exports as well.

Exporters can use the certification as credible proof of document while trading globally.

It involves a real-time, four-phased audit recording.

The scheme is in conformity with the FAO guidelines on certification of aquaculture.

The event, where industry leaders and experts deliberate on policies and actionable road maps to achieve the countrys marine products export target of USD10 billion by 2022, has 'Blue Revolution: Beyond Production to Value Addition' as its focal theme.

The Governor called for efforts to attract Foreign Direct investment into the sector for increasing employment opportunities and boosting seafood exports through an innovative model based on diversification and value addition.

Delivering his inaugural address at the three-day showpiece event of the marine industry, Khan expressed confidence that India would be able to increase its share in global seafood trade from 4.1 per cent to 6.7 per cent by 2030 by increasing production, value addition and diversification.

Highlighting the importance of seafood, Khan pointed out that 40 per cent of the global population live within 200 km from seacoasts and 12 of the 15 mega cities are on the coasts.

In India alone, about 40.5 million people are involved in the fisheries sector, which also contributed one per cent to the gross domestic product (GDP), he noted.

Oceans and fisheries have always fascinated the imagination of Indians as the first incarnation of Lord Vishnu was in the form of a fish, he explained.

Billed as one of Asias largest seafood fairs, the IISS is being held in Kochi after a gap of 12 years.

Over 1,500 delegates, 50 of them from 12 foreign countries, are attending to deliberate on policies and actionable road maps to achieve the countrys marine products export target of USD10 billion by 2022.