About Shrimp Farming
There are both saltwater and freshwater shrimp, but shrimp farming usually refers to saltwater. These shrimp can be grown in many different locations, including hatcheries and even lakes where the proper conditions are met. A permit is required to start a shrimp farm in most countries, and natural lakes must have a high salt and clay content. There are many versions of shrimp farms depending on the size of the operation.
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Definition
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A shrimp farm is used to produce large quantities of marine shrimp that are then sold for commercial gain. The practice began in the 1970s and has increased rapidly, especially in locations such as Thailand. The farmers grow shrimp in impoundments, tanks, natural ponds and concrete raceways. The United States tends to import much of its shrimp from shrimp farms located overseas.
Phases
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Shrimp farms can be either one-phase or two-phase. A two-phase cycle creates separate living habitats for juvenile and adult shrimp. The juvenile versions are bought from hatcheries and stock in smaller nursery ponds that are maintained carefully to keep the young shrimp healthy, and the adult "grow out" ponds are used when the shrimp mature and require more room and different conditions. A one-phase cycle grows the shrimp from hatchlings to adults in the same pool.
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Factory Scales
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There are small, medium, and large shrimp farms. Small farms are often run by families and specialize in low operating costs by using small tanks and closing whenever demand falls. Problems such as disease can wipe out entire crops, but they can start again more easily than larger farms. Medium farms use larger tanks to allow algae and other creatures to grow, creating a mini-ecosystem for a smaller number of shrimp. Large scale hatcheries use large quantities of "seed stock" to produce vast numbers of shrimp, aided by large tanks and complex filtering mechanisms.
Farming Strategies
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Closely connected with factory scale are farming strategies. A farm that wants to breed shrimp for survivability so that it realizes a profit with more efficiency will focus on larger ponds and natural ecosystems. Farms that aim for a large and reliable production will use smaller ponds filled with large amounts of shrimp that are moved in and out as fast as possible. The more intensive strategies require greater investment.
Ecological Considerations
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In some areas of the world, shrimp farming has had a detrimental effect on the surrounding ecosystem. This occurs in areas such as Thailand, where farmers, seeing the profit to be made in shrimp farming, convert their rice farms and nearby mangrove forests into shrimp farms. The loss of the mangroves and related vegetations seriously hampers surrounding ecosystems, leading to problem in all other types of farming and wild harvesting.
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References
- Photo Credit shrimps image by Sergey Goruppa from Fotolia.com
