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Studies on Nitrofuran Contamination in Exportable Shrimp and Prawn Products

A. K. M. Nowsad
Department of Fisheries Technology, Bangladesh Agricultural University Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh

M. R. Islam
Department of Fisheries Technology, Bangladesh Agricultural University Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh

M. A. R. Faruk
Department of Fisheries Technology, Bangladesh Agricultural University Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

For the last few years, several consignments of frozen prawn and shrimp from Bangladesh have been rejected by the EU and USA due to presence of nitrofuran drugs. We have investigated the source of nitrofuran drugs in shrimp and prawn through participatory stakeholder based approach. Survey in greater Mymensingh region revealed that most of the hatchery operators and prawn farmers did not know about the devastating effect of nitrofuran on prawn while survey in Cox’s Bazar and Khulna revealed that most of the hatchery operators knew about the nitrofuran drugs but they kept mum on nitrofuran related issues. A series of antibiotics sold in local veterinary drug shops of Cox’s Bazar and Khulna were found to be used in shrimp hatcheries. While conducting stakeholder based dialogue in Khulna and Cox’s Bazar, hatchery operators were directly blamed by shrimp/prawn farmers, depot holders and processors for using nitrofuran drug. Many hatchery technicians mentioned that they used nitrofuran drugs in the hatcheries 5-6 years back, much before than it was declared banned on shrimp products, but at present they were not using it. While asking about the unlabelled drugs using in their hatcheries, they did not respond but mentioned the efficacy of nitrofuran in the survival of shrimp/prawn PL and promotion of their growth. From the participatory stakeholder based study it was understood that both the prawn/shrimp hatchery and poultry feed/fish feed used as shrimp/prawn feed in grow out ponds might be the possible sources of contamination of nitrofuran drugs in exportable shrimp/prawn products.

Keywords: Nitrofuran, Shrimp, Prawn. products, Hatchery, Feed

Location: Mymensingh, Khulna, Satkhira, Bagerhat, Chittagong and Cox’s Bazar

Start Date:

End Date:

Program Area: Postharvest and Agro-processing

Commodity: Shrimp

Objectives:

To investigate the source of nitrofuran drugs in shrimp and prawn through participatory stakeholder based approach. It is the first investigation of its kind in Bangladesh.

Methodology:

Questionnaire surveys were conducted through several semi structured questionnaire formats. The collected data were cross-checked, verified and field tested through rapid rural appraisals (RRAs), group discussions, brain storming and personal contacts. Taking the nitrofuran issue as a serious concern, a series of dialogue in the form of workshop, RRA, focused group discussion (FGD) and brain storming were carried out with the stakeholders in Khulna, Chittagong, Cox’s Bazar and Mymensingh. Firstly, several distinctive RRAs were conducted on the shrimp farmers, hatchery operators and traders in Khulna and Cox’a Bazar. Same was done with the prawn farmers and hatchery operators of five upazilas of Mymensingh - Fulpur, Gouripur, Sadar, Trishal and Valuka. Government machinery like district and upazila fisheries administration, upazila level fish farm managers and Deputy Directors of Fish Inspection & Quality Control (FIQC) wing of the Department of Fisheries (DoF) in Chittagong and Khulna were involved in such dialogues to cross-cut the argument of different stakeholders in the value chain. Stakeholder-based workshops on nitrofuran use and its impact on shrimp industry was organized in Khulna and Cox’s Bazar with different stakeholders of the value chain as participants. Main stakeholders were shrimp/prawn farmers, hatchery owners, hatchery operators/technicians, PL traders, shrimp/prawn transporters, depot holders, feed processors, processing factory owners, NGOs, research institutes, FIQC officials and academia personnel. Valuable information related to the contamination of shrimp/ prawn by nitrofuran derivatives have come out from the workshops. Different stakeholders were allowed to discuss on common specific items separately. The team leader of each stakeholder group presented respective group outputs. The participants were given full freedom to discuss the current situations of shrimp/prawn industry in general and nitrofuran contamination in particular. Presentations provoked the participants to uncork the mouth and actively take part in the discussion. Cross discussion, justifications of issues, cross-cutting answers, arguments and counter arguments, etc. laid a genuine platform for finding out the fact behind the use of nitrofuran in prawn and shrimp. These stakeholder-based workshops made strong basis for contributing to the policy deriving workshops organized by the Department of Fisheries and the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock in Dhaka, where all policy making, regulatory and implementing agencies were participated.

Source of Information: Progress. Agric. 20(1 & 2) : 143 – 151, 2009, ISSN 1017-8139

Article Link (Online Journal): http://www.banglajol.info/index.php/PA/article/view/16866/11842

Funding Source:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

Both survey and stakeholder-based dialogues revealed that most of the stakeholders did not know about nitrofuran or other illegal drugs before. Many stakeholders blamed that nitrofuran type illegal drugs have still been used in the shrimp hatcheries and ponds for disease control and rapid growth. But the hatchery owners did not confess the blame. A strong doubt was raised against shrimp/prawn feed producers/suppliers, local or imported, which were supposed to be contaminated with illegal growth enhancing drugs. Feed processors/distributors also did not confess such blames. In such ambiguity, direct detection of nitrofuran metabolites in representative samples of shrimp/prawn hatchery PL, feed, products, water and soil samples through advanced technologies are required.

Knowledge Management: Journal