Source: The Nation
In an interview Fisheries Minister Rajitha Senaratne of Sri Lanka answered some questions on country’s tuna industry.
Question: Foreign trawlers were being allowed to take away our fish resources right before their eyes leaving them nothing. Have you put a stop to this shameful practice?
We have completely stopped that.
There is not even a single foreign trawler operating in our Exclusive Economic Zone.
We have only allowed foreign ships to bring in the catch they make in the Indian Ocean beyond our EEZ of 200 miles.
This is primarily to boost our exports as we need to provide tuna for export.
Q: Though we are surrounded by the sea why is it that we have so far failed to set up a proper tuna canning factory despite so much periodic discussions about setting up such a venture?
You can set up a fish canning factory, but the problem is in finding the necessary quantity of fish.
It has to be either mackerel or baby tuna. I have now negotiated with the baby tuna supplier to Thailand to supply us. We have set up the first factory in Kalutara. It is a small one.
I have already opened it and their product is coming to the supermarkets, but quantity is it is small. Even if you have ten fish canning factories that will not be enough to meet the country’s demand for canned fish. For a year we import about 3.5 million canned fish.
The biggest problem was that we had the war for 30 years and there were lot of restrictions on fishing. As the permitted engine capacity for fishing boats was limited to 15 horse power no big vessels were brought in. Now only we have got it increased to 40 horse power.
Three more investors have agreed to set up canning factories. A block of land has been allocated for the first one in Galle. Now we are in the process of finding land for the other two factories.