JOURNAL OF THE ARABIAN AQUACULTURE SOCIETY Vol. 8 No 2 Arabian Aquaculture Conference June 2013 Major Constraints Facing Development of Marine Shrimp Farming in Egypt Mohamed E. Megahed1,2* , Samir Ghoneim1, Gaber Desouky1, Ashraf EL- Dakar3, 1Suez Canal University, Faculty of Environmental Agricultural Sciences, AL-Arish, North Sinai, Egypt. 2National Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (NIOF), Branch of Gulfs of Suez & Aqaba, Attaka, Suez, P.O. Box.: 182, Postal code: 43511, Egypt. 3 Faculty of Fish Resources, Suez University, Egypt. *Corresponding Author : [email protected] ABSTRACT Shrimp aquaculture plays a vital role as an alternative source of income for coastal fishery communities as it contribute in reducing the pressure on marine natural resources and recently is considered as an important sector for supporting rural economic development. It is expected to show growth in the marine shrimp sector in Egypt, and the success of individual operations will depend on the successful application of a variety of multidisciplinary activities. Economic viability must be linked to better marketing strategies and food safety, transparency, traceability, quality, and sustainability issues are at the forefront of Egyptian concerns and actions. Technical improvements are expected to continue to improve cost efficiency and stimulate further species diversification at a time when fisheries production is stagnant and in certain sectors in decline. Simplified legislations and licensing procedures have been called and continued as well as coherent policies for research and development is essential. We will focus in this paper on the challenges facing the shrimp mariculture development in Egypt and the requested approaches to treat these challenges and improve this industry. Keywords: Shrimp mariculture, challenges, strategy, development, regulation. INTRODUCTION Shrimp culture in Egypt dates back to the Introduction Shrimp culture has attracted early 1980s, where a first shrimp farm were considerable attention in recent years not only established near Alexandria (Sadek et al., 2002). because of its value as food supply but also of Currently, all of shrimp hatcheries in Egypt rely its high potential as a foreign exchange earner. on wild broodstock to produce the postlarvae Several countries, realizing this fact, have given needed for stocking farms. This reliance on wild the shrimp farming industry a high priority in broodstock can result in lost production as a their fisheries programs. Also, recognized the result of delays in capturing broodstock or need for the continuing development of modern variation in the natural abundance of shrimp techniques or procedures for the hatchery and (Preston et al., 1999). Also, reliance on wild pond culture of the marine shrimp. broodstock has the risk of the spread of diseases. © Copyright by the Arabian Aquaculture Society 2013 321 MEGAHED ET AL The shrimp farming industry still depend on International Cooperation and managed by wild broodstock and no trial to domesticate research team from Faculty of Environmental Peaneid species in Egypt. The sustainability of Agricultural Sciences to detect the constraints aquaculture will depend on continuous facing shrimp farming at this valuable site from controlled reproduction achieved from marine aquaculture in Egypt. generations bred and maintained in captivity, not Description of the study sites: on the permanent supply of seed or breeders from the wild. Supply from the wild will remain Shrimp & Fish International Company doubtful as long as the sustainability of the (SAFICO- Egypt) capture fisheries is not assured (Bilio, 2007). The aim of the present work was to estimate The site is situated in the delta of Wadi Kid, on the Gulf of Aqaba (28o 11 َ 12.6846″ N major constraints facing development of marine and 34o 22 َ 23.8872 َ E; Figure 1). Wadi Kid shrimp farming in Egypt. has a catchment area over the Sinai desert of about 1000 km2, composed mainly of high mountains and steep valleys, and the delta is MATERIALS AND METHODS susceptible to flash flooding. The most recent Study sites floods occurred in January, 2010. A light to moderate North East (NE) wind blows for about The study sites were selected as the most 90% of the year important sites with history in marine shrimp (http://www.windfinder.com/wind/windspeed.ht farming and faced several constraints led to the m). The water table is deep below the surface failure of the shrimp production. This gives us and the tidal range is 0.6 – 1.2 m and is of a possibility to deal with the real world of shrimp semi- diurnal nature. The site consists of river farming constraints. The advantage of working deposits; boulders and small stones up Valley, with these selected sites is the availability of progressing to fine sand, silt and patches of clay facilities to study and farmers to cooperate with deposited from past flooding. Water them. First site is the Shrimp & Fish temperatures in the Gulf of Aqaba are seasonally International Company (SAFICO), Nabq variable with a maximum of 27 oC and a Protectorate, Sharm EL-Sheikh, South Sinai, minimum of 19 oC in August and February, Egypt. This farm has maturation and hatchery respectively. Water temperature in the tidal flats facilities to produce marine shrimp postlarvae is much more variable with a maximum (PL) and experimental earthen ponds. The study recorded temperature of 34 oC and a minimum at that site was carried out from January 2009 to of 16 oC December 2011. There was a contract between (http://www.zoover.co.uk/egypt/egypt/nabq-en- the owners of SAFICO and the author of this nabq-bay/weather). paper to develop marine shrimp farming and AL-Deba study site they provided the author with all facilities and technologies to overcome constraints of shrimp This area is defined by Damietta to the farming in this farm. west, the Mediterranean Sea to the north, and Lake Manzala to the south (31o 28 َ 22.62 َ N Second site is AL Deba Triangle, Port- and 31o 55 َ 13.2486 َ E; Figure 2). It comprises Said - Damietta. At that sites there was a a triangle of low-lying and reclaimed land, repeated cases of shrimp loss and crop failure which has found a natural use for aquaculture, and farmers does not really recognized the being unsuitable for other purposes. Total area reason, and through the shrimp hatcheries and under production may be as high as 20,000 farm development project funded by Ministry of feddan (including hosha system). 322 MAJOR CONSTRAINTS FACING DEVELOPMENT OF MARINE SHRIMP FARMING IN EGYPT Figure 1. Satellite map shows the SAFICO farm location including Growout ponds, hatchery, power generators, green houses and staff accommodation. Figure 2.Satellite map shows the Deba Triangle location including Growout ponds. 323 MEGAHED ET AL Methods carried out to perform stage one of semisulcatus and Marsupenaeus japonicas. the study Today Egypt has two marine private hatcheries This study was carried out with the operate with a low production capacity and are purpose of collecting knowledge concerning not working regularly, but works according to constraints facing shrimp farming in Egypt. This the demand of the farmers, as in some years study includes extensive survey and filed study there is no demand for the shrimp postlarvae and at two sites with history of shrimp production in some other years the demand in average and suffered from failure of marine shrimp cannot exceed thousands of shrimp Postlarvae farming. (AL-Deba and Shata farming Zones). Survey of the shrimp production constraints at Few farms sometimes culture shrimp and both sites: these farms are not specialized in shrimp The identified major constraints in production, but are stocking shrimp after the SAFICO and AL – Deba Triangle farming nursery period of marine fishes collected from system were: Bad feed quality; high feed cost; the wild or obtained from the two working low growth and low survival. In addition to marine hatcheries (Haraz and AL- Wafa marine pond construction, Pond soils, farm layout and hatcheries). The management and production of management practices problems of each site these shrimp farms during 90-150 days of grow- were identified. out are ranging for stocking densities (5 to 20 post larvae (PL)/m2 ), survival rates (< 5 to 82 RESULTS %); average animal weight at final harvest (<10 Survey of constraints facing shrimp culture in to 32 gm) and shrimp yields average 26 to 864 Egypt and pilot experiments to practical kg/ha per year, converting this production value diagnosis these constraints. into our local calculation kg/feddan, considering The results of this stage were organized 1 ha= 2.38 feddan, then the production in two sections. The first one is concerned with kg/feddan/year (864/2.38) = 363.02 the results of the survey of the sites with history kg/feddan/year. There is only farm specialized of shrimp farming. The second section is in shrimp production and played important roles concerned with the results of the pilot in developing shrimp farming in Egypt namely; experiments at the two selected sites of potential SAFICO farm which worked and stopped history of shrimp farming and faced several several times for the reasons of the lake of seed constraints in shrimp culture. The second section technology, feed technology, disease problems, was started after knowing the key constraints in logistic problem of environmental agencies and section one. The results organized as follow: high production costs. Based on the results of the survey, the Shrimp culture can develop Survey of the shrimp farming sites in Egypt. rapidly in the coming decade if: The constraints facing development shrimp mariculture in SAFICO and AL-Deba Triangle 1. We could mitigate the technical and Zone. institutional constrains mainly (quality of seed During the last three decades, there has production and their limited seasonality from been increasing investment in shrimp farming in April to August; Egypt and there are clear indicators for further 2.