CANDABA, Pampanga —- The first industrial nursery and grow out facility of Australian Redclaw Crayfish in the country was inaugurated in this town on Nov. 19, targeting local and exportation supply needs.
The said facility was built under the leadership of Farm Fresh Early Catch Inc., in collaboration with Da Shin Biotech Ltd. of Taiwan and the Department of Agriculture.
According to Raphael Pelayo, executive director of Farm Fresh, the said crayfish facility currently has a capacity of five tons of market size crawfish per hectare every six months.
Its nursery capacity is 1,280 sqm consisting of 16 tanks with a capacity of 3,000 craylings per tank.
He said it also uses a circulating filter for clean and minimal water use.
Former Candaba Mayor Jerry Pelayo said the crayfish industry in the country is a good livelihood opportunity because of its high demand.
Aside from this, they also plan to build crayfish nurseries in Laguna, Visayas, and Mindanao and they are targeting 1,000 hectares because of the unlimited demand now in Mainland China.
Pelayo said it is good to raise crayfish in the country because there is no winter season here. This, even as he noted that they need the support of the DA especially when it comes to dispersal of crayfish fingerlings for expansion.
Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Region 3 director Wilfredo Cruz said the DA supports the said industry and has already issued regulations for transportation, chemicals in their care, correct size of crayfish nurseries and prohibiting to raise them in fish cages to prevent crayfish from spreading to rivers.
