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Prawn farmers demand feed price cut
In Short
Andhra Pradesh prawn farmers submit a petition to the Fisheries Commissioner demanding lower feed prices, fair market rates, and subsidized electricity amid heavy losses.
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Prawn Farmers Association leaders staging a protest in front of the office of Commissioner of Fisheries in Vijayawada on Monday
Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh Prawn Farmers’ Association submitted a petition to the State Fisheries Commissioner on Monday, urging the government to resolve issues related to feed prices, prawn market rates, and power supply for prawn farmers. In the petition, the farmers said that thousands of families in the State depend on prawn farming for their livelihood.
The prawn industry earns large foreign exchange for the country. However, farmers are now facing heavy losses and financial distress due to rising feed prices and the absence of fair market rates for their produce. Tiger prawn prices have fallen from Rs 150 per kg for 30-count to Rs 100 per kg for 20-count in recent months, the farmers said.
The farmers demanded that feed companies reduce prices immediately. They said that feed companies have raised tiger prawn feed prices to Rs 26 per kg and vannamei feed to Rs 21 per kg. They also demanded that the 45-day feed price review policy be scrapped immediately; and subsidised electricity at Rs 1.50 per unit for all prawn farmers without any power factor conditions, regardless of farm size.
Meanwhile, farmers staged a protest against Fisheries Commissioner Rama Shankar Naik for allegedly making insulting remarks while they submitted the petition. When farmers questioned how feed companies raise prices every 45 days without buying raw materials monthly, the Commissioner asked whether they were real farmers at all. Farmers from Nellore, Prakasam, Bapatla, Krishna, and West Godavari districts strongly condemned this remark.
Association State convenor Duggineni Gopinath led the delegation, including K Srinadh Reddy, Meka Venkateswara Rao, P Venku Reddy, Pamidi Subbanaidu, and others.
