The shrimp hatchery industry in the Philippines

Abstract

Fifteen years after SEAFDEC Aquaculture Department first offered its training course on Barangay Prawn Hatchery Management, the giant tiger shrimp industry has grown tremendously. Among the private investors in shrimp (Penaeus monodon) hatchery is Jamandre Industries, Inc. But problems (e.g., scarcity of spawners and lack of effective artificial feeds) led the company to explore culture of penaeid shrimps other than tiger shrimp. Although survival of P. stylilostris and P. vannamei were found to be higher than P. monodon in grow-out ponds and in the hatchery, their culture did not take off in the country. For the penaeid shrimps, technology remains largely an art.