Malaysia Fisheries Dept authorizes shrimp farmers to use only L. vannamei from Florida and Hawaii

Malaysian aquaculture entrepreneurs will only be allowed to breed Litopenaeus vannamei with juveniles obtained from licensed hatcheries in Hawaii or Florida, according to Ismail Abu Hassan, director of the aquaculture development division of Malaysia Fisheries.

“The Fisheries Department only allows the import of mother prawns from countries where the prawns are healthy,” he said at a seminar attended by 150 breeders and operators of hatcheries. “To date, the only healthy ones are known to come from Hawaii and Florida.”

L. vannamei are being bred as an alternative to Penaeus monodon, which remains the main species bred in Malaysia. Both species are expected to enable the country to expedite achieving the target of producing a total of 150,000 metric tons by 2010. This year’s exports were expected to reach 50,000 metric tons valued at US$263 million, Hassan said.

It is expected that 7,000 breeders and 100 hatchery operations were expected to benefit from the decision to import the L. vannamei from Florida and Hawaii.

The Wave