A Case Study on the Present Status and Potentiality of Shrimp Farming in Bangladesh

Abstract

Shrimp and prawn together represent the second largest exportable items contributing to foreign exchange earnings of Bangladesh. Shrimp farming has a significant impact on the environment and economy. However, in our country, farmers practice traditional method of shrimp/prawn farming and productivity of shrimp is very low (300-400 kg/ha) compared to the other shrimp producing countries of the world (Islam and Mahmud 2011). One of the major causes of poor productivity is the extensive or traditional method of farming (90 per cent of total farms), whereas developed countries brought their farms under intensive or semi-intensive methods of farming. However, it is possible to increase shrimp/prawn productivity more than 500-600 kg/ha through traditional organic system of farming (Jatiya Matsa Saptaha 2010). This study shows that Bangladesh has great potentiality to increase productivity of shrimp and prawn by introducing intensive and semi-intensive methods of farming.