A government-funded but stakeholders-operated Bangus and high-value fish hatchery, support and short-term subsidy in feeds production and clear policies on fish importation could make the Philippines a major producer of farmed fish in the world.
Fishcage farmer Jothon Lanzar, who operates over 200 fish cages in Malalag Bay, Davao del Sur said if these three interventions are introduced and supported by government, there would be a dramatic turn-around for the Philippines from being a fish-importer to fish exporter in 5 years.
The Philippines has the 5th longest coastline in the world at 36,298-kilometers with many coves and bays ideal for fishcage farming but the absence of a huge well-funded hatchery to focus mainly on fry production for Bangus and other high-value fish species has deterred the development of the industry, according to Lanzar.
He proposed a Public-Private Partnership in the establishment and operation of a huge Bangus hatchery and warned that the country’s dependence on Indonesia for fry could endanger the country’s Bangus industry.
“What if one day, Indonesia will say that it will keep their Bangus fry for their own fish producers, just like what they did recently with the supply of coal?,” Lanzar asked when I met him Wednesday.
“Kailangan din namin ng suporta mula sa gobyerno sa supply at presyo ng aqua feeds na sobrang mahal na ngayon kaya napilitan kami magtaas ng farm gate price,” Lanzar said.
Dagdag pa ni Jothon na kailangan din maliwanag ang polisiya ng gobyerno sa importasyon ng isda para maging kampante ang mga prospective investors sa fishcage farming.
Ito ang mga inputs na nagmumula sa mga stakeholders mismo na aking kausap at naniniwala ako na panahon na upang pakinggan ng gobyerno ang mga ito para matupad na ang pangarap natin na magiging fish sufficient ang Pilipinas.
#HItTheGroundFeelThePulse!
#GovernanceIsCommonSense!
#foodsufficiencyisnationalsecurity!
(This video was taken on Wednesday in Malalag Bay, Davao del Sur by the media team of the Biyaheng Senado ni Manny Piñol.)
https://fb.watch/asB1sc9EJn/
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