Thailand: Aquaculture and Fisheries

The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), under the Blue Transformation initiative, is supporting Thailand to improve the productivity of the aquaculture sector and meet the increasing demand for nutritious food.

In Thailand, shrimp farmers are introducing innovative technology to boost production.

Shrimp farming has suffered from viral outbreaks for a long time in the country. As a result, farmers developed a system to avoid the spread of shrimp diseases and increase productivity.

The system comprises paddle wheel aerators for water treatment and automatic feeders.

The aerators create water flows that carry waste towards drains, thus cleaning water more efficiently and preventing infections, while automatic feeders are designed to feed shrimps more frequently and with the correct amount of feed.

Kirana Leesakulpran, a 48-year-old mother of two, has been farming shrimp for almost 30 years. On her farm in the Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, she adopted this new system.

SOUNDBITE (Thaï) Kirana Leesakulpran, Shrimp Farmer:

“The water treatment control system cuts time needed to purify water. Normally, it takes seven days. If we use the water treatment control system, the water purification time is reduced to only three days.”

Thanks to the automatic feeder Kirana has seen a productivity increase because shrimps are better nourished. At the same time, feed waste, which is one of the main costs for farmers, has been reduced.

SOUNDBITE (Thaï) Kirana Leesakulpran, Shrimp Farmer:

“Since implementing this new technology and system, we’re able to produce more. We earn more profit and it makes our lives as farmers more sustainable.”

In Thailand, more than 23 million people, almost 34 percent of the population, are currently food insecure, according to the latest UN report on the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World.

To address the root causes of food insecurity, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), under the Blue Transformation initiative, is supporting Thailand to improve the productivity of the aquaculture sector and meet the increasing demand for nutritious food.

At the same time, in its effort to promote sustainable practices, FAO is encouraging through this initiative the efficient use of natural resources in aquaculture.

Sustainability is at the center of FAO’s Blue Transformation also with regard to better management of the marine environment.

With FAO support, Thai authorities are stepping up regulation of commercial fishing fleets, to address illegal fishing and contributing to the restocking of fish in coastal areas.

In recent years small-scale fishers like Theerapong Thammasara had experienced a reduction in their catches and saw their family’s livelihoods put at risk. But because of the newly enacted measures, waters are starting to repopulate with mackerels and anchovies.

SOUNDBITE (Thaï) Theerapong Thammasara, Fisher:

“Probably because of all the regulations that have been implemented. Big fishing boats cannot come within three miles of the shore. And there are some rules about anchovy. These must be the reason why the mackerels are coming back.”

For the people whose livelihoods depend on fisheries, the balance between ecological sustainability and productivity plays a vital role in securing access to nutritious food.

FAO's Blue Transformation initiative aims at effective management of fisheries at the global level with illegal, and unregulated activities phased out by 2030.

Furthermore, the Blue Transformation aims to increase sustainable aquaculture production by 35 percent by 2030.

This aims to guarantee food security, nutrition, and affordable healthy diets for the most vulnerable, thereby ensuring that the Sustainable Development Goals are met.  

TRT: 02:20

SOURCE: FAO

RESTRICTIONS: PLEASE CREDIT FAO ON SCREEN

LANGUAGE: THAI / NATS

DATELINE: 26-29 APRIL 2022, PRACHUAP KHIRI KHAN PROVINCE, THAILAND

SHOTLIST

1. Aerial shot, shrimp aquaculture ponds

2. Aerial shot, shrimp aquaculture with water paddle wheel aerators in action

3. Close up, Kirana Leesakulpran, shrimp farmer, walking

4. Med shot, Kirana Leesakulpran catching shrimps with a net

5. Close up, shrimps in a fishing net

6. SOUNDBITE (Thaï) Kirana Leesakulpran, Shrimp Farmer:

“The water treatment control system cuts time needed to purify water. Normally, it takes seven days. If we use the water treatment control system, the water purification time is reduced to only three days.”

7. Aerial shot, water paddle wheel aerator in action

8. Close up, water paddle wheel aerator in action

9. Wide shot, fish farmer walking towards an automated shrimp feeding machine

10. Med shot, fish farmer checking shrimp feed in an automated shrimp feeding machine

11. SOUNDBITE (Thaï) Kirana Leesakulpran, Shrimp Farmer:

“Since implementing this new technology and system, we’re able to produce more. We earn more profit and it makes our lives as farmers more sustainable.”

12. Aerial shot, fishing boats at sea

13. Aerial shot, a fishing boat docked at a pier

14. Wide shot, workers in a wholesale market

15. Med shot, a fish counter at a wholesale market

16. Aerial shot, a fishing boats docked at a pier

17. Wide shot, small-scale fisherman fishing

18. SOUNDBITE (Thaï) Theerapong Thammasara, Fisher:

“Probably because of all the regulations that have been implemented. Big fishing boats cannot come within three miles of the shore. And there are some rules about anchovy. These must be the reason why the mackerels are coming back.”

19. Wide shot, fish market

20. Med shot, a lady at work in a fish market

21. Close up of fish for sale in a market

22. Med shot, a fishmonger holding a fish