India sets seafood export target at $10 billion by 2020
Indias continued buoyancy in sustainable seafood exports in the face of stiff global competition would be on full display at the 22nd India
International Seafood Show (IISS) here from February 7-9, officials said on Thursday. Also showcasing the latest technological interventions in the aquaculture sector, the event would witness industry leaders and experts deliberating on policies and actionable roadmaps to achieve the countrys marine products export target of USD 10 billion by 2022.
Blue Revolution: Beyond Production to Value Addition is the theme of the three-day marine industrys biennial event being jointly organised by the Marine Products Export Development Authority (MPEDA), the nodal agency of the Union Ministry of Commerce & Industry, and the Seafood Export Association of India (SEAI).
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan would inaugurate the show here on Friday. Minister of State Commerce and Industry Som Parkash
would present the awards a day later. Billed as one of Asias largest seafood fairs, the IISS is being held in Kochi after a gap of 12 years, they said.
MPEDA chairman K S Srinivas said the IISS 2020 offers a platform to all stakeholders to deliberate on various aspects of the seafood industry for striking business deals.
It also provides tremendous scope for tapping new avenues and introducing various technologies and products to the global market. A major objective of the event is to highlight the countrys commitment towards sustainability in the entire value chain of seafood products such as primary production, processing and transportation, he told a press conference.
The event also offers a platform for all stakeholders to discuss new techniques in processing and traceability and value addition to products for export, he said. IISS 2020 would have 1,500 delegates, with 50 of them from 12 foreign countries. Entry would be open to the public on February 9 with a fee of Rs 100.
SEAI national president Jagdish V Fofandi said Indias seafood industry is poised for stronger focus on value addition of the products. During 2018-19, India exported over 14,37,000 tonnes of marine products worth over USD 6.70 billion as per provisional figures.
With a multi-pronged strategy, addressing capture fisheries and aquaculture, it is expected to achieve an export turnover of $ 15 billion in the next five years, Fofandi said.
Internationally acclaimed experts from France, Singapore, the UK, USA, Japan, the Netherlands, Germany and Fiji besides India would address technical sessions on topics of current interest such as Prospective Markets & Regulatory Environment, Certification, Traceability & Value Addition, and Tuna export value chain - Better harvest practices. India is the second largest aquaculture producer in the world, largest exporter of shrimp to USA. India is also exporting significant volume of shrimp to Europe and other markets in South East Asia.
