Oceanic Shrimp Company receives first batch of shrimp broodstock

Muscat – Oceanic Shrimp Company (OSC), a subsidiary of Fisheries Development Oman (FDO), received its first batch of shrimp broodstock on Wednesday.

The broodstock, which are mature shrimp used for breeding purposes in aquaculture, are currently transferred into an aquatic veterinary quarantine facility in Al-Misfat Industrial Area in Bausher.

This batch of broodstock will remain in the quarantine facility that was launched earlier this year for the purpose of ensuring the health and safety of the shrimp that is scheduled to be farmed in OSC farms. The facility operates in a closed circulation system, utilising recycled seawater for a quarantine period of up to 35 days, during which the broodstock are monitored and examined.

The purpose is to ensure that it is free from any potential harmful elements that may implicate negatively on the Omani environment before transferring them to designated farms on the coast of the Arabian Sea.

The company is currently in the process of completing a number of shrimp aquaculture farms in the Wilayats of Jaalan Bani Bu Hasan, and Jalan Bani Bu Ali in the Governorate of South Sharqiya. One of the key projects that is being finalised is the Quroon project in Jaalan Bani Bu Hassan. The project is expected to begin operations by next month.

These projects come within FDO’s planned investments in the sector, which seeks to diversify Oman’s economy and strategically develop the fisheries sector in the sultanate to provide job opportunities for the national workforce, and provide support to Omani SMEs, and the local community.