Snapper Seed Production would fulfill the domestic demand for marine finfish
M Venkaiah Naidu, Vice President of India has recently released the John’s Snapper Seed Production Technology and dedicated the Snapper Seeds in a function organized at the Visakhapatnam Regional Centre of ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kochi on 7th December 2020. He handed-over the Snapper Seeds to two Progressive Fish Farmers hailing from the region.
In his address, Naidu accentuated that the Snapper Seed Production and Subsequent Mariculture in Cages would fulfill the domestic demand of marine finfish as the cheap and best source of animal protein. Being a rich source of Omega-3 Fatty Acids, the Snapper’s consumption will improve the general well-being of the country’s vast population and its farming would be lucrative for fish farmers. He emphasized that the existing gap prevalent in the country between demand and supply can only be bridged by marine cage farming and there is a need to further diversify the species mix.
Snappers are in high demand globally and are much sought after in India with the farm-gate price of this fish is Rs 400/kg. It is an excellent species for mariculture owing to its fast growth rate, efficient feed conversions, fantastic meat quality and superior consumer preference. John’s snapper seeds globally have only been produced in Singapore with limited success. Keeping this in view, ICAR-CMFRI at Visakhapatnam Regional Centre started developing broodstock a year and a half back.
The fishes matured and were induced to spawn in the beginning of this year. Thereafter, continuous seed production has been achieved. This is the first instance in the country that snapper seeds have been produced. With the production of snapper seeds on a consistent basis, Indian mariculture is poised for a new surge with exponential increase in mariculture finfish production.
