India’s MPEDA: Tuna Expansion Remains Spearpointff

Interview by Sreekumar Raghavan, Commodity Market

India’s marine sector contributes 1.3% to its Gross Domestic Product and is ranked third among fish producing countries while it holds 19th rank among major exporting countries. The sector provides livelihood for seven million fishermen and three million are employed in the processing industry catering to exports. Of late, marine exports is facing a lot of challenges with respect to availability of raw material, appropriate technology and ensuring safety standards mandated by the European Union, the largest market for India’s fish products.

Since 1972, Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA) has been in the forefront of catering to the processing and export promotion of fish in the country. However, changing market dynamics needs a different kind of mindset and pro-active intervention on the part of the commodity board. G Mohan Kumar, IAS, Chairman of MPEDA, who completes his fourth year in office, told Sreekumar Raghavan how the organization is trying to meet the multiple challenges facing the sector.

What do you think are the major challenges facing the marine sector in India to improve exports and how does MPEDA go about solving the problems?
India has a serious raw material shortage, our fish catch fell as much 71,000 tons in 2007-08, that led to a quantitative fall of 11.6%. Our exports are shrimp centric and in our aquaculture sector we have been stuck up badly although we occupy second position in this area. Our products are more of fresh water which gets locally consumed. As you may be aware, during the mid-1990s disease affected a majority of our export products, including shrimps, and that affected the ability of our industry to expand. Our potential fish area is 1.2 billion ha but only 15-20 per cent of it is utilised. Our black tiger shrimp is facing increasing competition from Vannamei, which is of a small size and much cheaper. Our shrimp should be disease-free and we need to diversify our shrimp products and we need large-sized black tiger. Now Vannamei, which was not earlier farmed in India, is being farmed and MPEDA is the quarantine agency. Till 10 years ago, we didn’t have large R&D budgets. We need that to address the issue of disease, diversification of our fish products and transfer of technology. Now, we have a society registered called the Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Aquaculture which has gone through teething problems and now has large budgets to undertake big projects.

What are the major activities of MPEDA for the 11th Plan period?
MPEDA has been allotted Rs 450 crore for the 11th Plan as against Rs 220 crore in the 10th Plan period. We would be devoting 20 per cent of it for R&D and marketing is also given a thrust. We are looking at brand promotion of black tiger shrimp. We are getting good support from Andaman and Nicobar Islands for promoting deep sea tuna fishing as it is the third most traded sea food in the world.

What about testing facilities of MPEDA?
We didn’t have testing labs before and now we have 3-4 labs another six labs will be set up in six months’ time. The European Union is not quite happy with our safety standards and an inspection team is coming in November. We are worried about our fishing vessels. Through Netfish, a society registered under MPEDA, we are imparting training to fishermen on maintaining their boats, landing centers, post-harvest handling, HACCP guidelines etc.

What do you think is MPEDA’s major challenge now?
We have shortage of raw material, our catch is falling. Then we have the technical problems — we don’t have the right technology. If technical problems were not there we don’t have to go to the farmers. They would cultivate on their own. When pathogen affects our products we don’t have the right technology. MPEDA is in an unenviable position — we have to develop the products, infuse technology wherever required and market them. As far as exporters are concerned, their capacity utilization is low. Their peak capacity is utilized only 40-50 days a year. After that, they remain idle and remember the fixed cost remain the same even if the plant is idle or at full capacity. We are trying to increase production through aquaculture and increase catch in deep sea through satellite mapping of regions.

What do you think would be the right strategy for us to follow?
Time has come for us to seriously think of importing fish for generating value-added exports but not for domestic consumption. And in fact domestic market for marine products is also growing. Personally, I doubt whether India can continue to be a major exporter as domestic market size is increasing. We are not able to satisfy their requirements. For example, in metros like Delhi, it is difficult to get fresh sea fish. For that we need to have cold storage chains. MPEDA has no mandate for domestic market and it is up to National Fisheries Development Board which is seized of the situation. Gradually, exports and imports may attain a balance or dynamic equilibrium. But stagnating exports isn’t a bad thing so long as farmers can get a remunerative price for their catch. We hope to become one of the top five fish exporting nations in the world as per our Vision Document.