A recent report prepared by the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO) has identified that the current recession in Japan and, subsequently falling yen, has delivered a severe blow to the Indian marine products. Its exports to this country account nearly for 46 per cent.

"The recession has led to a drop in demand for marine products in the Japanese market in the current financial year, 1998-99, which has a cascading impact on the price line. With stocks and inventories beginning to build up from the end of last year, the price came under increasing pressure in Japan, which became evident only after a protracted lag effect by March 1998. With the probability of yen gravitating to the 160-180 level to a dollar, export revival toJapanese market is very unlikely in near future," the report stated.

Even a major concentration on the European countries, Indian marine products' second largest market, will not be sufficient to avoid a crisis, as the ban by the European Union still continues.

EU first banned Indian marine products in August, last year for not maintaining clean, hygienic and edible international standards. However, it was subsequently lifted on December 23, 1997, after Export Inspection Council decided to monitor every consignment. At present, only 27 processing units and two freezer vessels are allowed to export its products to the European nations.

As a result of this ban by the EU, exports of marine products dropped by 50 per cent, in value terms, during 1997-98. Even in the first two months of the current fiscal, the downtrend continued.

"Observation of the April-May performance of exports in the current financial year, 1998-99, reveals that marine products have declined by five per cent in value terms and 16 percent in quantity terms as compared to the same period in the 1997-98 fiscal. In quantity terms, export is to the order of 4,73,000 tonnes compared to 5,51,000 tonnes during the same period of the last fiscal. In value terms exports declined to Rs 605 crore during April-May 1998-99. Value of exports was Rs 635 crore during the same period in 1997-98," the FIEO report stated.

After Japan and EU, the third largest market of Indian marine products is the United States. Even the consumption patterns of the American are more or less the same like the Europeans.

However, experts are not expecting a major success in the American market because the warm water - cold water confluence, as a result of the El Nino will help the Latin American (Latam) fishermen. They are expected to come up with a record catch.

This would affect Indian exporters to the US. Pressures on the price parameter will increase because Latam fishermen will have an advantage on the freight charges.

Even the aquaculture ban by the SupremeCourt, after receiving a report from the National Remote Sensing Agency (NSRA) raising doubts about the manner of farming, has hindered shrimp production and in turn, exports of marine products.

NSRA reported that although shrimp farming began in the barren and salt affected areas of the coastal districts, it quickly spread to mangroves, which are considered essential for ecological balance, and other cultivated areas, including paddy fields.

This unplanned shrimp farming, NSRA reported, lead to a deadly viral disease among the shrimp crops, which were predominantly observed in the coastal areas of the southern states. This has created serious health hazards and also fell short of international quality standards. Recent cyclonic disaster in the ports of Porbandar and Kandla has also affected the exports of Indian marine products.