The Cilacap Regency Government, Central Java, through the local Fisheries Service, is trying to boost shrimp exports to a number of countries in Europe which are currently experiencing a downturn due to the crisis on the continent. "So far, the main export markets for shrimp from Cilacap are European countries, then Japan. ," said the Head of the Cilacap District Fisheries Service, Indarto, in Cilacap, Wednesday. He admitted that before the crisis occurred, Europe was ready to accept any volume of shrimp production in Cilacap at a good price because at that time large, expensive shrimp were in great demand. In this case, he said, the production of export-quality shrimp, especially vannamei shrimp in Cilacap in 2021, will reach 4,700 tons and will be absorbed for the export market. "However, at present, importers are less interested in large shrimp that are expensive, because they prefer shrimp that are smaller in size and cheap," he said. Furthermore, Indarto said the sluggish shrimp exports also had an impact on the decline in commodity prices. He gave an example of the price of vannamei shrimp, which usually can reach above IDR 55,000 per kilogram for size 100 (100 shrimp in 1 kilogram), but now it is around IDR 52,000-IDR 53,000 per kilogram. "Even in mid-2022 it could touch IDR 50,000 per kilogram for size 100," he explained.
Related to this, he said that currently shrimp farmers in Cilacap prefer not to cultivate shrimp to large sizes because it takes longer time but the additional price is only a little. In this way, he said, farmers can harvest more quickly so that they can add to the cultivation cycle and yield more. Therefore, he estimates that shrimp production in Cilacap in 2022 will decrease due to changes in cultivation patterns carried out by farmers. "Usually it has been ramped up at the end of the year, but it is still sluggish. Hopefully if the price improves, the farmers will be enthusiastic again, especially since the weather is actually quite good," said Indarto.
