DIVERSIFY: FISH BASKET

NEWS: The Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying has advised States and the fisheries sector to diversify both fish species and export markets due to:

• Tariff uncertainties in seafood exports
• Climate change impacts on aquaculture

Core Issue: Risk of Mono-species Dependence

• Many Indian fish farmers depend on one species.
• If disease strikes that species, losses spread rapidly across regions.
• Example: White Spot Syndrome Virus (2006–07) wiped out farming of Penaeus monodon (black tiger shrimp)

Government’s Key Strategy: Species Diversification

Inland Aquaculture

• States are encouraged to promote: Scampi, Tilapia, Pangasius
• Instead of traditional carps: Rohu, Catla

Shrimp Diversification

• Currently dominant species–>Litopenaeus vannamei
• Govt focus: Improving indigenous species: Penaeus indicus, Penaeus monodon (giant tiger prawn)

New Farming Technologies Promoted: Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA)

• Cultivates multiple species (fish, shellfish, seaweed) together.
• Waste from one species becomes nutrient for another.

Other Initiatives

• Promotion of marine cage culture
• Seaweed farming (as done in China & Norway)
• Aligning fish production with local food cultures