Antara News, Sun, April 3 2011
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The Japanese demand for young `sidat` (eel, anguilla) fish from Indonesia is increasing after the country was recently hit by an earthquake and its subsequent tsunmai, a ministry official said.
"The catching of sidat seeds in South Korea and Japan is being banned after the natural disaster while in Indonesia it is allowed," Ketut Sugama, director general for fishery affair, said here on Sunday.
He said that the need for Sidat fish in Unagi for example reached 600,000 tons while only 200,000 tons of these portion had been met.
The senior official of the Ministry of Maritime and Fishery Affairs made the remarks when attending the harvest season of `vaname` shrimps in Karawang`s Cultured Fish Production Center Project (BLUPPB), in West Java.
He said that the Japanese people liked this fish because they believed the fish could lengthen their ages, keep them at a young look and maintain their stamina.
Therefore, he said, in anticipation of the increase in the demand for the fish from Japan, his side is offering investors a cooperation to develop the fish production in Indonesia, particularly in the Karawang`s BLUPPB.
"We are opening a chance for investors to develop sidat fish breeding here but they should involved in partnership and transfer their technology to local businesses," he said.
In the meantime, head of the BLUPPB Supriyadi said a Japanese investor had now been ready to develop sidat fish in the government-owned integrated fish pond project.
He said that PT Nippon Maru was ready to run a three hectare sidat pond with an annual production target of 3,000 tons.
Of the 400 hectare fish ponds in the integrated fish breeding project, some 225 hectares are managed by the government and 152 hectares by plasm whose development later would be given to investors.
Editor: Jafar M Sidik
