Taiwan Aquaculture Business Group To Visit South Asia

Taiwan Aquaculture Business Group To Visit South Asia - TAIPEI - As part of efforts to help expand Taiwan's aquaculture industry overseas, the semi-official Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) will organize a visit by an aquaculture business delegation to South Asia in May aimed at studying the investment climate there, council officials said Saturday.

In the preliminary plan, the officials said, local aquaculture operators and manufacturers of peripherals for the industry are welcome to join the group on a visit to India's Chennai and Bangladesh's Dhaka from May 14-24

During the visit, the delegation will hold industrial forums with local counterparts and manufacturers in an effort to ascertain the state of aquaculture development in the two countries, as well as trading opportunities. Efforts will also be made to build links with local business organizations in the sector, TAITRA officials said.

The aquaculture sector has become more and more important as marine fishery resources are shrinking significantly as a result of overfishing. Benefiting from warm weather and geographic advantages, the South Asian area along the Bay of Bangladesh has developed into a global center of the aquaculture industry.

India is the second-largest inland aquaculture operator in the world, with around 2.25 million hectares of land fit for the establishment of commercial fish farms, while Bangladesh is also listed in the world's top 10 exporters of shrimp bred in captivity, according to the TAITRA.

With advanced and mature technology in the field, including whole plant design and manufacturing of relevant equipment and feed, Taiwan's aquaculture industry should seek opportunities overseas in order to grab global market share, TAITRA said.

Source: Taiwan Central News Agency (CNA) - 25th February 2006