The Hindu Business Line : Oceanaa in pact for shrimp hatchery

Agri-Biz & Commodities - Aquaculture
Corporate - Alliances & Joint Ventures
Money & Banking - Public Sector Banks
Oceanaa in pact for shrimp hatchery

Tripartite deal with IOB, farmers.

R. Ravikumar

Chennai, Dec. 2 Oceanaa Group’s Oceanic Edibles International Ltd has signed a tripartite pact with Indian Overseas Bank and a group of farmers for shrimp hatchery.

According to the agreement, IOB will extend loans to shrimp farmers in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry who, under contract farming scheme of Oceanic Edibles, will culture shrimps. Oceanic will supply these farmers seeds, feed and technology support, and will also buy back prawns for further processing and export.

According to Mr A. Joseb Raj, Managing Director of Oceanaa Group, international buyers are scornful of Indian shrimps because of the shrimps’ muddy tang and a lingering smell of antibiotics. He claimed that Oceanic is in possession of a technology that eliminates the disagreeable tang — a factor that helped it get the bank loan.

This contract farming will ensure traceability and more transparency to the export market right from the purchase of brood-stock, hatchery, faming and processing. “With the help of a new software developed Oceanaa will ensure availability of all traceability records to the buyer,” he said.

The Oceanaa Group is a diversified entity with business interests in food processing and the IT sector. The group is a major player in farming and processing of aqua shrimps, vegetables and fruits. It recently set up a full-fledged marine food products, vegetables and fruit processing plant and aseptic packaging unit at an investment of Rs 90 crore, at Marakkanam, near Puducherry.

Besides, it has also entered retailing under the brand ‘Fish N Fresh’. Currently, the group has three outlets in Chennai, all above 4,000 sq ft, and is planning to open two more in the city. The company has so far spent Rs 10 crore in this, partly funded by another loan from IOB.

“Once we have sufficient back-end supply in place, we intend to add another 25 outlets across the South in the next two years,” said Mr Raj.

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