'Oplan Balik Sugpo' nets 3.65 tons of tiger shrimp
REVIVING THE SUGPO INDUSTRY. The 3.65-metric-ton harvest from SEAFDEC/AQD’s 110-day culture trial in Dumangas, Iloilo, forms part of efforts to promote environment-friendly and biosecure shrimp-farming practices through Oplan Balik Sugpo.
SEAFDEC
ILOILO CITY — Efforts to revive the country’s black tiger shrimp industry under the “Oplan Balik Sugpo” program gained another production benchmark after a 110-day culture trial by the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center’s Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC/AQD) yielded 3.65 metric tons of shrimp in Dumangas, Iloilo.
Harvested on 7 and 8 October at SEAFDEC/AQD’s Dumangas Brackishwater Station, the shrimp were raised in two ponds as part of an ongoing study led by Associate Scientist Dr. Edgar F. Somblingo.
The production results are expected to help researchers evaluate shrimp-growing performance and identify improvements in culture practices that could support the program’s goal of revitalizing the local sugpo industry.
Using a semi-intensive culture system, researchers stocked each pond with 100,000 postlarvae at a density of about 20 shrimp per square meter.
Pond 7, covering 5,299 square meters, yielded 1,869 kilograms, while Pond 8, with an area of 5,161 square meters, produced 1,781 kilograms.
The harvested shrimp had average body weights of 22.25 grams in Pond 7 and 22.27 grams in Pond 8.
Pond 7 recorded an 84-percent survival rate and a feed conversion ratio (FCR) of 1.32, compared with Pond 8’s 80-percent survival rate and 1.35 FCR.
FCR measures the amount of feed needed to produce a given weight of shrimp, with a lower ratio generally indicating more efficient feed utilization. Feed consumption reached 2,467 kilograms in Pond 7 and 2,404 kilograms in Pond 8.
Dr. Roger Edward Mamauag, head of SEAFDEC/AQD’s Technology Verification and Extension Division, said the harvest provided an opportunity to assess pond performance under a semi-intensive system, particularly the effects of stocking density, feeding and other management practices on shrimp growth.
SEAFDEC/AQD Chief Dan Baliao said the production data would help determine shrimp performance and identify ways to improve farming methods under Oplan Balik Sugpo.
The program seeks to revive the country’s black tiger shrimp industry by promoting environment-friendly and biosecure aquaculture practices.