An assessment of the existing organic shrimp culture practices in the southwest region of Bangladesh

Abstract

Shrimp farming has had a great impact on Bangladesh's economy. By the time being several farming approaches has been launched to uplift production as well as the farmer’s income. Of the various cultural techniques, organic farming is getting popular owing to its high market value. This survey investigated the present status of organic shrimp farming in south-western Bangladesh. Three districts (Khulna, Bagerhat and Satkhira) comprising 35 traditional shrimp farmers and 87 organic shrimp farmers were chosen, and data were gathered using the direct interview approach. About 41% of farmers were between the ages of 40 and 49. The majority of the farmers had primary schooling while a small number were illiterate. The family size of the 69.23 % farmers was 5-8 members and 35.38% persons had an experience of more than 20 years. Organic farming practices following EU organic Aquaculture Standard Regulation (EC) No 710/2009 was found higher (65%) in Satkhira since many organic shrimp production hubs were established there. About 77% organic shrimp farmers received training on organic farming in Satkhira and many of them used feed during culture. The study revealed that, the productivity of organic shrimp was 485 kg/ha, which is almost 27% higher than traditional (380 kg/ha) farming. The benefit cost ratio (BCR) for organic shrimp farming was 2.08, which indicated that it is quite profitable. The study suggests that institutional support, technical assistance along with proper training could enable Bangladeshi shrimp farmers to adopt organic culture widely that would bring immense socioeconomic and environmental benefits.