Ecuadorian shrimp beefed up in Guangzhou

Ecuador, a major shrimp exporting country, is expected to see nine to 12 percent growth in its shrimp exports to Asia this year.

"We are growing as an industry mainly because of the exports to Asia, particularly China," said Jose Antonio Camposano, executive president of National Chamber of Aquaculture of Ecuador, at an Ecuadorian white shrimp seminar held in Guangzhou on Oct 25.

About 367,000 tons of shrimps were exported from Ecuador worldwide last year, 56 percent of which were bound for Asia.

White shrimps make up the second largest non-oil export commodity in Ecuador, after bananas, with shrimp exports estimated at 450,000 tons this year.

The country is the biggest shrimp exporter to the Europe Union, taking up about 22 percent of its total shrimp exports.

The Ecuadorian shrimp industry is working on an initiative to become the first country to implement zero-anti-biotic certification, Camposano said.

About 250,000 tons of white shrimps were produced in Guangdong province last year, the largest among Chinese provinces, mainly for the domestic market, said Lin Guopeng, chairman of Guangdong Aquatic Products Processing and Marketing Association.

About 720 tons of shrimp were exported from Ecuador to Guangdong last year.

There remains room for growth in the shrimp market in Guangdong and Ecuador's white shrimp industry can benefit from the Chinese market, Lin said.

The first half of this year saw aquaculture product imports of 50,800 tons, or $359 million, to Guangdong, up 28 percent and 21 percent year-on-year respectively.