In Yucatan, shrimp farming is beginning to become a profitable activity, since by working with two native species it was possible to reduce by 40% the consumption of balanced feed, which is substituted with algae, revealed Manuel Valenzuela Jimenez, a researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM).
Furthermore, to avoid contamination and the spread of diseases, new systems are used for water management as well as shared species, such as the mullet, which consumes the waste generated by shrimp.
He emphasized the need to preserve the custom of consuming native decapod crustaceans, because although they are small in size, local fishing activity is activated and the introduction of foreign species that could alter the ecosystem is avoided.
In addition, he highlighted the achievements obtained with four species of shrimp, two of which are native to the coasts of the Yucatan Peninsula, the pink shrimp (Farfantepenaeus duorarum), which grows in Campeche, and the Caribbean red shrimp (F. brasliensis), in the waters of Quintana Roo.
Although they also work with the white shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico (Litopenaeus setiferus) and the white shrimp from the Pacific (L. vannamei), the latter is the most commercialized and consumed, in addition to being large in size, as well as the most domesticated, the most prone to diseases and most of its diet is balanced food.
Recent studies show that red and pink shrimp have several advantages to compete with the species from the Pacific Ocean, in the first place, it is more popular and accessible to consumers in the Peninsula.
In the circular ponds there are about 200 shrimp per square meter, so “a diner will not be able to eat a large one, but he will be able to taste several of them, since they are of medium size”.
The person in charge of the Fattening Area of UNAM’s Shrimp Program mentioned that the Pacific species consumes abundant balanced feed, which represents a strong economic benefit for the businessman.
He remarked that in the Sisal Academic Unit of the University it has already been achieved that both native species consume less balanced feed, without affecting production as well as reproduction.
“The consumption of this type of food has already been reduced by 40%, and their diet of algae as well as microalgae has increased”, he emphasized.
Commonly, when working with shrimp, the waste is thrown into the sea and the water that is dumped has an excess of nitrogen and there is a notable absence of oxygen, thus contaminating the place, at the same time that it can spread diseases and affect the species of the marine ecosystem.
For this, we work with the alternative culture system, and in the same pond there are several species, such as the mullet, which consumes all the substances dissolved in the water.
At the same time, we work with the system of not changing the water, since the ponds have a dynamic recycling system, thus protecting the environment.