WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • MARCH 2013 33 the farmer’s identification number. The price is fixed for each harvest and is calculated on the basis of the international price for organic shrimp. Organic shrimp farmers receive payment within 2-3 days. From the collection center, shrimp are transported directly to a nearby organic processing plant where they are processed the same day and stored at -18 C. The organic processing plant has high hygienic and quality standards that are continuously monitored. This ensures a very high product quality that improves on the standards of conventional processing plants in Bangladesh. From the processing plant, frozen shrimp are shipped to Hamburg, Germany. There, shrimp are packed and transferred to local supermarkets where it is sold as an organic product. Within the OSP, value is added to the product or at least maintained at every step such that it truly can be called a value chain. This is not necessarily the case for the conventional supply chain, where much of the value (quality) of shrimp is lost through the stages of sales, transport, and processing. Moreover, Naturland certification and the OSP are further steered by broad social criteria, including worker contracts, working conditions, workers associations, and gender justice. As it is culturally quite difficult at the moment to realize principles like gender equality or working contracts in Bangladesh, the OSP tries to raise awareness on social issues through additional workshops and other activities. Opportunities Presented by the OSP For farmers, the main benefit of the OSP is increased income associated with low input costs and higher productivity, with the security of a continuous income, even if the price they receive for the shrimp is not necessarily as high as they could receive from middlemen on good days (Paul and Vogl 2012). These advantages are captured in the voices of some organic shrimp farmers. Organic shrimp farming provides space for a new definition of community and opportunities for better community development. Farmers get professional support to improve farming practices, including management of water and soil quality and, through this process, become more sensitive to environmental and social issues. Some farmers reported that they did not think much about “nature” before they entered the OSP but that people are now more conscious of their natural environment. Moreover organic farming is more labor intensive than conventional farming, which is positive for landless people engaging in daily labor. Barriers to Organic Shrimp Production People negatively affected by a shift to organic shrimp production include those who were engaged in the conventional value-chain, such as the middlemen for selling, the depots and the auctioning center; collectors of wild fry because organic shrimp production uses only PLs from a certified hatchery; and those providing Abdul Satter, organic shrimp farmer. “Before switching to organic I used to sell the shrimp to a middleman, who did not pay me directly and sometimes we had to wait two months for the income. The price I got for the shrimp also varied a lot; sometimes it was very high, sometimes very low. In the organic system I regularly receive cash in hand and there is no need to worry. Switching to organic production I could increase my production, which combined with the lower input cost, allows a higher overall income. This consistency ensures that my family has enough to eat every day.” (CONTINUED ON PAGE 34) FIGURE 7. Shrimp selling at a local market in Dhaka. FIGURE 8. Organic shrimp processing plant in Shatkira.
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