US-India trade row: Impact on Indian Marine products
The central government is actively addressing challenges posed by US trade measures impacting seafood exports. Initiatives like PMMSY and FIDF are strengthening the sector through infrastructure development, technological advancements (RAS, biofloc), and sustainable practices (TEDs, marine mammal assessment). MPEDA facilitates exports, ensuring consistent supply to global markets, including the US, while prioritizing fishermen's welfare.
New Delhi: The Department of Fisheries under the Government of India is aware of trade measures taken by the Trump administration on certain marine goods that involve sanitary compliance and sustainability requirements and has assured the various stakeholders of the marine products export ecosystem. The department further said that these trade measures are not specific to India and are applied to multiple trading partners.
The overall impact on Indian seafood exports, including those from the state of Andhra Pradesh, is determined by a combination of factors such as product differentiation, demand conditions, quality standards, and contractual arrangements between exporters and importers, said the Fisheries Minister George Kurian in a written reply in Lok Sabha.
Government Schemes to boost seafood exports promotion
The Central Government is in continuous consultation with seafood exporters, industry associations, entrepreneurs, and the State Fisheries Department to prioritize the welfare of fishermen, seafood exporters, and processors. The government, in its attempt to strengthen the fisheries sector, has rolled out various initiatives like Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and the Fisheries and Aquaculture Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF).
These initiatives are supporting the creation and strengthening of fisheries infrastructure, like the upgrading of fishing harbours and fish landing centers, development of post-harvest infrastructure, cold chain and processing facilities, adoption of advanced technologies such as Recirculatory Aquaculture Systems (RAS) and Biofloc, quality test and diagnostic laboratories, promotion of export-oriented species, etc.
MPEDA's role in seafood promotion
The Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), the export promotion statutory body established in 1972 under the aegis of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, promotes and facilitates seafood exports through the help of various initiatives like exporter registration, quality standard-setting, liaison with importers, capacity-building programs, and participation in trade fairs, exhibitions, and buyer-seller meets.
In order to ensure the seamless, sustained, and uninterrupted supply of Indian seafood to various seafood export markets, including the US, the government is undertaking several measures. One of the measures includes the Marine Mammal Stock Assessment Project, which is a collaborative effort to study and protect marine mammals. It aims to document marine mammal abundance, bycatch, and mortalities, and to suggest ways to reduce their incidental capture and death.
Additionally, the government is also installing the Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs) in shrimp trawlers, which are specialized grids installed in shrimp trawl nets to reduce sea turtle bycatch. These initiatives are being undertaken under the PMMSY. The scheme also supports the installation of sea ranch and artificial reef.
For the financial year 2023-2024, India exported an all-time high volume of seafood worth 1,781,602 MT (metric tons), minting Rs 60,523 crore ($7.38 billion). The USA and China are their biggest export markets, respectively.