BAGERHAT, Oct 21 (UNB): A fact-finding European Union delegation visited a frozen shrimp export factory and a demonstration farm run by the Fisheries Department in the coastal district today (Sunday) to examine the quality of exportable shrimps.
The two members of the team - MC Mac E Boy and Inspector Raj Patal - from the EU Food and Veterinary Mission visited the Rupsa Fish and Allied Processing Centre at Kathaltola in Fakirhat Upazila and the demonstration farm at Radhaballab in Sadar Upazila.
They closely observed the process of maintaining quality of the exportable food item, of which European Union countries are the main importers.
Local Fisheries Department officials said shrimp is cultivated in 0.144 million hectares across the country, some 66,000 hectares in Bagerhat alone.
The country produces 65,000 tonnes of shrimp annually, and nearly half the quantity--27,886 tonnes--are produced in this southwestern district along the coast of the Bay of Bengal.
There are 46 modern shrimp-processing factories in Bagerhat, Khulna and Satkhira districts.
"That's why a big portion of the shrimps is exported from the Khulna region every year," said one source.
Bangladesh Frozen Foods Exporters Association said the country earned Tk 35 billion by exporting quality shrimps in the 2006-07 fiscal year.
The inspection team sent by the EU shrimp-importing countries would examine each and every activity, from shrimp production to processing.
The future of shrimp export from the country will largely depend on their reports, the sources said.
EU team visits Bagerhat shrimp factory
FE Team | Published: October 22, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00
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