DEPARTMENT OF AQUACULTURE BANGLADESH AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY MYMENSINGH

Transcription

1 ASSESSMENT OF STAKEHOLDERS PERCEPTIONS ON PANGASIUS AQUACULTURE DIALOGUE (PAD) STANDARDS IN TWO VILLAGES, MYMENSINGH, BANGLADESH A THESIS BY HAZRAT ALI EXAMINATION ROLL NO. 08 FISHAQUA JD-23 M SEMESTER: JULY-DECEMBER, 2009 REGISTRATION NO SESSION: MASTER OF SCIENCE (M. S.) IN AQUACULTURE DEPARTMENT OF AQUACULTURE BANGLADESH AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY MYMENSINGH NOVEMBER, 2009

2 ASSESSMENT OF STAKEHOLDERS PERCEPTIONS ON PANGASIUS AQUACULTURE DIALOGUE (PAD) STANDARDS IN TWO VILLAGES, MYMENSINGH, BANGLADESH A THESIS BY HAZRAT ALI EXAMINATION ROLL NO. 08 FISHAQUA JD-23 M SEMESTER: JULY-DECEMBER, 2009 REGISTRATION NO SESSION: Submitted to the Department of Aquaculture Faculty of Fisheries Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE (M. S.) IN AQUACULTURE DEPARTMENT OF AQUACULTURE BANGLADESH AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY MYMENSINGH NOVEMBER, 2009 ii

3 ASSESSMENT OF STAKEHOLDERS PERCEPTIONS ON PANGASIUS AQUACULTURE DIALOGUE (PAD) STANDARDS IN TWO VILLAGES, MYMENSINGH, BANGLADESH A THESIS BY HAZRAT ALI EXAMINATION ROLL NO. 08 FISHAQUA JD-23 M SEMESTER: JULY-DECEMBER, 2009 REGISTRATION NO SESSION: Approved as to style and contents by: Dr. Mohammad Mahfujul Haque Supervisor Prof. Dr. Monoranjan Das Co-supervisor Prof. Dr. M. Mamnur Rashid Chairman Examination Committee and Head Department of Aquaculture Bangladesh Agricultural University Mymensingh NOVEMBER, 2009 iii

4 ABSTRACT Pangasius aquaculture started since 1990 and compared to other aquaculture practices, it has been developed quickly as a commercial enterprise over the last 15 years. Growth of Pangasius enterprise linked to the export market has been occurred considerably in Vietnam having a similar agro-ecological status of Bangladesh. The global export market and consumers tend to consume aquaculture produces being produced in a sustainable social and environmental manner complying specific standards. Considering the context of Bangladesh, this study was conducted to assess the impacts of Pangasius aquaculture on diverse stakeholders and their perceptions on Pangasius Aquaculture Dialogue (PAD) standards using multiple methodological tools of participatory rural appraisal (PRA). The study was conducted in the village Malotipur (MP) in Muktagacha upazila was selected as high density Pangasius farms (150) where all the rice-fields were converted to Pangasius aquaculture and Maddhovtipara (MV) in Trishal upazila with small number of farms (35) in Mymensingh. A wide range of impacts of Pangasius aquaculture on both farmers and non-farmers with respect to sustainable livelihood approaches with few negative benefits. Pangasius farmers have been improved themselves with increased income, food security, status to provide employment opportunities for the low-income people, rejecting anti-social activities however, construction of ponds indiscriminately in village created obstacles for the movement of neighboring villagers. Non Pangasius farmers, particularly farm laborers got their job locally in Pangasius farms enjoying different benefits including consistent year round income, getting fish and vegetable at free of cost, getting credit assistance to social activities, financial assistance for their health treatment as well as living improvements have also occurred for fisher, fry traders, fish traders, intermediaries, transporters especially rickshaw/van pullers to large trucks drivers, commercial fish feed industries, chemical and antibiotic seller and workers in the water loading point. Pangasius farmers considered issue 3 (Water Pollution and Waste Management) with top rank as it is difficult for them to understand water quality parameters and they do not know the current situation of water quality in their ponds. On the other hand, non-farmers found issue 7, (Social Responsibility and User s Conflict) is very relevant to them and therefore they think a labour association should be made where farmers also agree with formation of labour association. However, if small-scale farmers need to comply with PAD standards that will require some cost involvement activities particularly to maintain water quality iv

5 parameters, feed efficiency parameters, use of standard quality feed/feed ingredients etc. Therefore external intervention for research and implementation work by the universities, GOs, NGOs and private organizations would be required to develop PAD standards in Bangladesh. v

6 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS At first, the author is remembering the Almighty Allah, the supreme authority of the universe, who empowers the author to complete the research work and the thesis for the degree of Master of Science (MS) in Aquaculture. The author finds a great pleasure in expressing his heartfelt indebtedness, sincere appreciation and profound regard to his supervisor Dr. Mohammad Mahfujul Haque, Associate Professor, Department of Aquaculture, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, for his keen interest, scholastic guidance, valuable suggestions, generous help, affectionate feelings, constant encouragement from the beginning to the end of the research work and preparation of this thesis. The author extends his profound gratitude, vast appreciation to his co- supervisor, Professor Dr. Monoranjan Das, Department of Aquaculture, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh, for right guidelines, cordial inspiration, constructive criticism and guidance during the tenure of conducting this study. The author also wishes to express his heartfelt indebtedness to Dr. Md. Mamnur Rashid, Professor and Head, Department of Aquaculture, BAU, Mymensingh, for his valuable teaching and suggestions, sympathetic consideration and every possible favourable attitude for providing necessary facilities to complete this research work. The author feels great pleasure in expressing his regard and deepest sense of appraciation to his respective class teachers Professor Dr. Md. Anwarul Islam, Professor Dr. Md. Mohsin Ali, Professor Dr. Kirtunia Juran Chandra, Professor Md. Jahir Uddin Miah, Professor Dr. Md. Bazlur Rashid Chowdhury, Professor Dr. Gias Uddin Ahmed, Professor Dr. Md. Ruhul Amin, Professor Dr. S. M. Rahmatullah, Professor Dr. Md. Ali Reza Faruk, Professor Dr. M. A. Salam, Department of Aquaculture for their good teaching and co-operation during the study period. The author expresses his cordial thanks to a research team of BAU for their kind cooperation. The author also grateful to Pangasius farmer especially Monir Bhai as well as Atuir Rahman, farm labour, chemical and antibiotic seller, labour in water loading point and labour in wholesale market for their cordial help in the completion of this research work. In conclusion, the author would like to acknowledge his heartiest gratitude to his beloved parents, brothers and sister for their enduring sacrifice, blessings, inspiration and encouragement which pave the way of his in this university. The Author Hazrat Ali vi

7 CONTENTS CHAPTER TITLE PAGE NO. ABSTRACT iv AKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi CONTENTS vii LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF FIGURES x LIST OF PLATES x CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1 CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE Aquaculture Status Certification scheme status 6 CHAPTER 3 MATERIALS AND METHODS : The study area : General description of study area : Methodology used to perform this study : Collection secondary information : Village resource mapping : Timeline analysis : Well-being ranking : Activity matrix and Ranking : Seasonal calendar : Semi-structured interview : Food consumption matrix and ranking : Focus group discussions : Case study 19 CHAPTER 4 RESULTS : Historical development of Pangasius aquaculture : Culture technology : Well-being status of Pangasius farmer 22 vii

8 CONTENTS (CONTD.) CHAPTER TITLE PAGE NO. 4.4: Major activities and ranking : Seasonal activities of Pangasius farmer : Impacts of Pangasius farming on stakeholders : Impacts on non-farmer (indirectly involved) : Impacts on non-farmer (directly involved) : Impacts on non-farmers (in arat -whole sale 28 market) indirectly involved 6.2.4: Impacts on non-farmers (water loading 29 business) indirectly involved 6.2.5: Impacts on non-farmers (chemical 29 businessman) indirectly involved 4.2.6: Impacts on Pangasius farmer : Impacts of Pangasius farming on food 31 consumption 6.3.1: Impacts on non-farmer : impacts on Pangasius farmer : Stakeholders perceptions on PAD standards : Perceptions of non-farmers on PAD 32 standards 6.4.2: View and comments of Pangasius farmers 33 on PAD standards CHAPTER 5 DISCUSSION General background of Pangasius aquaculture Impacts of Pangasius aquaculture on stakeholders CHAPTER Stakeholders perception on PAD standards 41 CHAPTER 7 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION 46 REFERENCES 48 APPENDICES viii

9 LIST OF TABLES TABLE TITLE PAGE NO. 1 The main certification schemes relevant to responsible 4 aquaculture standards 2 Activity matrix and ranking by Pangasius farmers in MV 24 3 Activity ranking by non-pangasius farmers in MP 24 4 Activity matrix and ranking by Pangasius farmers in MP 24 5 Seasonal activity chart of Pangasius farmers in MV 25 6 Seasonal major activities of Pangasius farmers in MP 25 7 Impacts ranking being made by Pangasius farming on nonfarmers 27 (directly involved) 8 Livelihood benefits of Pangasius farming on non-farmer 28 (directly involved) 9 Impacts of Pangasius farming on farming households Comments on PAD standards (non-pangasius farmers) in 32 MP 11 Views and comments of non-farmers on the PAD standards 33 in MV 12 Views and comments of Pangasius farmers on the PAD 34 standards in MV 13 Comments on PAD standards (Pangasius farmers) in MP Ranking of PAD standards by Pangasius farmer group 36 ix

10 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE TITLE PAGE NO. 1 Species-wise production of inland aquaculture of 2 Bangladesh in Map of Pangasius farming village Moddhovatipara, Trishal 15 3 Map of Pangasius farming village, Malotipur, Muktagacha 16 4 Well-being ranking of Pangasius farmers in the village MV 23 5 Well-being ranking of Pangasius farmers in the village MP 23 x

11 LIST OF PLATES PLATE TITLE PAGE NO. 1 Well-being ranking was done by Pangasius farmer 20 2 Well-being ranking was done by non Pangasius farmer 20 3 Activity matrix and ranking was done by Pangasius farmer 20 4 Food consumption matrix was done by Pangasius farmer 20 xi

12 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The world population was approximately 6.44 billion in As per the projections made by the International Institute for Applied Systems (IIASA), this will rise to approximately 7.83 billion by 2025 (Bostock et al., 2008). According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO, 2007), the fish production was million t for human consumption in 2005 and if population increases at the predicted rate by the IIASA, demand for food fish should rise to 113.4, and 130 million t by 2010, 2015 and 2025 respectively (Bostock et al., 2008). Hence, there is an increasing demand for fish food of growing population with an additional focus on fish as healthy food. In the context of world, 90% by volume and 78% by value of aquaculture production is produced in Asia and the production is increasing (Clausen et al., 2008). Aquaculture now accounts for almost 50% of the global food fish. Current trend and expectations are that aquaculture will play an even more important role in the future both in terms of a highly internationally traded and export friendly sector as well as an invaluable source of protein contributing to food security in the region (Clausen et al., 2008). Bangladesh is one of the world's leading inland aquaculture producing country with a total production of 2,563,296 t in 2008 (DoF, 2009) of which t or percent was come from inland aquaculture (Figure 1) and t or percent from marine. Total available fish and fishery products for export percent is exported to USA, percent to European countries, 9.32 percent to Japan and the remainder to Thailand and Middle Eastern countries (Hossain, 2003). Aquaculture and fishery products are the most important export commodity of the country which contributing 4.04 percent of its exchange earnings in Bangladesh earned US$ 566 million of which shrimp alone contributed 66 percent of the total by quantity and 84 percent by value (DoF, 2009). Shrimp export and cultivation in Bangladesh has undergone rapid expansion over the last two decades. It contributes significantly to rural employment and economy but this is overshadowed by negative environmental and social impacts. The environmental impacts include: mangrove loss, by catch during collection of wild seed and broodstock, introductions and transfers of species, spread of parasites and diseases, misuse of chemicals, and release 1

13 of wastes (Primavera, 2006) where socioeconomic impacts include: privatization of public lands and waterways, loss of fisheries livelihoods, food insecurity, and urban migration (Primavera, 2006). Fig. 1: Species-wise production of inland aquaculture of Bangladesh in In Bangladesh, about 63% of animal protein of the diet of the people comes from fisheries and aquaculture (Ahmed, 2005) consisting of 260 freshwater native species, 12 species of exotic fishes, 24 species of freshwater prawn, 475 marine fish species and 36 species of marine shrimp (Haque, 2005). Sarker (2000) reported that amongst exotic fish species Pangasius (Pangasianodon hypophthalmus) is the best due to its easy culture system, favorable weather condition for culture and high market demand for a wide rage of people ranging from poor to better-off. In recent years, Pangasius has become one of the most popular commercial culturable species due to its high yield and low production cost and availability of fry. Regionally, inland aquaculture production is dominated in Mymensingh region where over the last 15 years, Pangasius aquaculture evolved to a shape of commercial enterprise having long backward and forward linkages providing livelihoods for a wide range of stakeholders (Haque, 2009a). The total aquaculture production in Mymensingh was about 163,000 t (16% of total country s aquaculture production) in 2008 of which 80% accounted for Pangasius (Haque, 2009a). Almost all of the produces are consumed domestically where there is a potential to earn foreign exchange by exporting this product to international markets. The growth in Pangasius 2

14 aquaculture production has raised concerns about negative social and environmental impacts related to farming such as water pollution, the spread of diseases and unfair labor practices at farm. It is noteworthy that fingerling and food fish marketing with associated services provided a huge employment opportunity for rural and peri-urban people while there are some businesses addressing these issues well and some are not doing so at all or are doing so poorly. Certification is a procedure through which written or equivalent assurance states that a product, process or service conforms to specified requirements (Corsin et al., 2007). It is conducted to assess conformity to specific requirements for a product or process. Certification scheme consisting of a certification standard and certification system as related to specified processes to which the same particular scheme applies (GFSI, 2007). At present there are at least 30 certification schemes (Table 1) and eight key international agreements which are relevant to aquaculture certification (Corsin et al., 2007). It can either target the food chain operators (also known as business-tobusiness, B2B, certification) or the consumers. In the first instance standards are applied within the supply chain and serve to ensure that the process or product being supplied through the chain is produced following the specified standards. Certification and standards that target consumers are aimed at segmenting the market for the final product by clearly differentiating certified products using labels or marks. Standards and the certification schemes developed to assess conformity can regulate either the process through which a product is produced or the product itself. Catfish farming is the 3 rd most important freshwater fish group within aquaculture sector as well as one of fastest growing sectors in the world (Clausen et al., 2008). Several aquaculture dominated countries seeking increased production of this these species. But there are several issues including land and water use, use of chemicals, wildstock, unstable market price etc. which might affect aquaculture sustainability. This problem can be solved by developing standards for aquaculture which reveals that the products do not have adverse impacts on environmental or social sustainability. The World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) has been conducting several activities towards the sustainability of the aquaculture sector by developing aquaculture standards. 3

15 Table 1: The main certification schemes relevant to responsible aquaculture standards (adapted from Corsin et al., 2007) Organizations and scheme Schemes promoted by retailers GLOBALGAP Safe Quality Food Carrefour Schemes promoted by the aquaculture industry Global Aquaculture Alliance & Aquaculture Certification Council Shrimp Seal of Quality (SSoQ) SIGES SalmonChile Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation Code of Good Practice Schemes promoted by governments Thai Quality Shrimp Certification schemes in China Vietnam GAP and CoC programme Hong Kong Accredited Fish Farm Scheme Certification schemes provided by NGOs Marine Aquarium Council International Standards Organization International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements Naturland Soil Association BioGro New Zealand Bio Suisse KRAV Fair trade certification schemes Alter-Trade Japan Ethical Trading Initiative Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International Animal welfare and free-range schemes Freedom food Label Rouge Other relevance schemes to aquaculture certification WWF aquaculture dialogues and standards Marine Stewardship Council Seafood Watch of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Environmental Justice Foundation Federation of European Aquaculture Producers International Fair Trade Association Swiss Import Promotion Programme Species Mainly salmonids and schemes ongoing for shrimp, tilapia and Pangasius Pangasius, salmon and oyster Shrimp and prawn Mainly Shrimp and schemes ongoing for tilapia, channel catfish and Pangasius shrimp salmonid salmon shrimp tilapia and carp, shrimp, crabs and turtles Tilapia and shrimp Pompano, cobia and grey mullet marine ornamentals species tilapia, carp, red drum, sea bass, sea bream, salmon, trout, cod and butter fish Salmonids, mussels and shrimp Atlantic salmon; trout and arctic char; shrimp; bivalves; carp Mussel and seafood trout, salmon, carp, shrimp and mussels as well as schemes ongoing for trout and Pangasius salmon, trout and Arctic char. Shrimp and prawn shrimp salmon shrimp salmon, trout, shrimp, tilapia, catfish, Pangasius, bivalves, seaweed and others wild-caught fresh and frozen fish Pangasius, crayfish, salmon, shrimp and tilapia Prawns and Shrimp Shrimp 4

16 It is hosting aquaculture dialogues to identify the most significant impacts, criteria, indicators and standards for the certification of sustainable aquaculture. WWF is responsible to lead the Pangasius Aquaculture Dialogue (PAD) standard that was developed based on the context of Vietnam where numerous Pangasius farms and more than 100 processing plants are contributing to the production and export market of Pangasius. As with Vietnam, Bangladesh has the similar agro-ecological condition with similar aquaculture activities Bangladesh Agricultural University (BAU), Mymensingh intended to work with the process as part of stakeholder of WWF with the support of British Council funded DelPHE programme. The first draft was developed with the involvement of a wide range of stakeholders and then PAD was improved with subsequent amendments. As part of the development of PAD standards, the first draft was sent for public comments for a period of 60 days to share with people from different corners of the world to get their views, comments, suggestions on the standards for its improvement. Currently the PAD standards are in second comments period and after receiving feedback, it will be finalized for further application. When the PAD standards will be adopted by the Pangasius farmers, it will be helpful to minimize the key negative environmental and social impacts associated with Pangasius farming in Bangladesh. Considering the above facts, the present study was conducted to address the following objectives: to figure out the general background of Pangasius aquaculture in Mymensingh to assess the impacts of Pangasius aquaculture on diverse stakeholders to assess stakeholders perceptions on Pangasius Aquaculture Dialogue (PAD) standards 5

17 CHAPTER 2 REVIEW OF LITERATURE Aquaculture started in ancient period in the world and gradually increased production for better management practices due to pressure of increasing population. There are many codes of conduct developed for capture marine fisheries addressing sustainable harvesting but these are in limited scale in aquaculture being in the emerging state of aquaculture Aquaculture status Capture fisheries and aquaculture provided the world with about million tones of fisheries production in 2006, of which aquaculture contributed 51.7 million tones and remainder was come from capture fisheries (FAO, 2009). In Bangladesh, total aquaculture and fisheries production for the year was above 2.56 million tones (DoF, 2009) achieving sixth rank among largest aquaculture producing countries in the world (FAO, 2009). Out of total fish production, aquaculture contributes 1,005,542 tones or 39.23% and remaining 1,060,181 tones or 41.36% and 497,573 tones or 19.41% was from inland capture fisheries and marine fisheries, respectively (DoF, 2009). The total catfish production for the year was about 85,869 tones which equal to 5.20% of the aquaculture production in the country (DoF, 2009). The total aquaculture production in Mymensingh was about 163,000 tones (16% of total country s aquaculture production) in 2008 of which 80% accounted for Pangasius (Haque, 2009a) Certification scheme status Over the last 30 years, aquaculture production in the world dramatically increased and many national and international organizations are trying to develop certification/standards for sustainable aquaculture. At present there are at least 30 schemes in the world relevant to aquaculture certification. GLOBALGAP is a private sector body that sets voluntary standards for the certification of a wide range of agricultural products, including aquaculture 6

18 commodities which led by British retailers and supermarkets. In 2003, GLOBALGAP initiated efforts for the certification of aquaculture through the GLOBALGAP Integrated Aquaculture Assurance (IAA). IAA standards applicable to aquaculture businesses were issued with the overall GLOBALGAP standards structure. So far the only such standards issued concern the farming of salmonids. However, working groups have been established and meetings are being held to also produce standards for shrimp, tilapia and Pangasius, in some cases with separate modules for different culture systems. GLOBALGAP standards for shrimp were launched by the end of 2007 (Garbutt, 2007). The Safe Quality Food (SQF) Program is a fully integrated food safety and quality management protocol developed by the SQFI, an originally independent entity located in Australia, which is now owned by the FMI. There are two sets of standards produced within the SQF Program, SQF 1000 for producers and SQF 2000 for processors, both of which are based on the Codex Alimentarius HACCP Guidelines. At present, there are 80 SQF-certified companies involved with the aquaculture sector. Of these, 76 are certified for SQF 2000 standards (i.e. for processors) and only four are SQF 1000 producers, all of which are located in Viet Nam and produce mostly Pangasius fish. Carrefour is the largest retailer in Europe and the second largest in the world. In 1992 Carrefour initiated the development of Carrefour Quality Lines (CQL), which are certification schemes through which products are identified on the basis of specific quality attributes and marketed with labels indicating their ownership to the scheme. CQL cover different aspects of the broad sustainability targets of Carrefour that include safety, environmental protection and the socio-economic development of the southern Americas. The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) is an international, non-profit trade association founded in 1997 by a wide range of companies involved with aquaculture production or the food business in general and mostly based in the Americas. The GAA published codes of practice for responsible shrimp farming, which provide technical guidance on shrimp farming and also include environmental and social issues and management. In addition to shrimp standards, the GAA also initiated 7

19 activities towards the development of standards for tilapia, channel catfish and Pangasius fish (DiPietro, 2006 In: Corsin et al., 2007). The Shrimp Seal of Quality (SSOQ) was initiated in 2001 as part of the second phase of the USAID funded Agro-based Industry and Technology Development Project (ATDP II). The SSOQ began with the development of BMP for shrimp farmers and continued with the development of standards applicable to every step in the shrimp supply chain including hatcheries, farms, processors, feed mills and traders. SSOQ standards cover several sustainability aspects including food safety, quality assurance, traceability and environmental and social responsibility. SalmonChile is the association of the Chilean salmon industry and includes all the main salmon producers and processors in Chile. In 2002 INTESAL which assigned by SalmonChile, initiated the development of an Integrated Management System (SIGES), aimed at standardizing salmon production and processing systems in order to achieve fish health, quality, food safety, environmental sustainability and occupational safety and health. As part of SIGES, sets of regulations and standards for both producers and processors were developed and were included in the Manual of Regulations and Best Practices. The Scottish Salmon Producers Organization (SSPO) is a newly expanded trade organization for the Scottish salmon industry responsible for supporting its members in addressing political, legal and technical issues. As an entry requirement for membership in the SSPO, the association created the Code of Good Practice for Scottish Finfish Aquaculture (CoGP). The CoGP is designed to address food safety, traceability, fish health, environmental protection and animal welfare. The SSPO CoGP sets standards for process, and not product, certification. In 1998 the Department of Fisheries (DoF) of the Government of Thailand initiated efforts towards the improvement of shrimp quality throughout the production chain. The Thai Quality Shrimp scheme is structured around two levels of compliance, i.e. Good Aquaculture Practice (GAP) that focuses on individual businesses (hatcheries or farms) and aims primarily at ensuring food hygiene and safety and the shrimp Code of 8

20 Conduct (CoC) addressing environmental sustainability. CoC standards are available for hatcheries, farmers, traders/distributors and processors. CoC businesses must also comply with the relevant Thai standards for feed and chemicals. Although efforts on quality control have been ongoing in China for several years and in 2003, a Quality Safety Regulation entered into effect to regulate several quality aspects including general operations, inputs (water, feed, drugs) and environmental protection, in addition to traceability (Liu, 2007). At the same time, efforts were also initiated to develop voluntary schemes for aquaculture certification. In addition to Safety Agri-food certification, ChinaGAP and the Green food standard schemes were developed which focused on organic aquaculture. The Vietnamese scheme on shrimp is based on two levels, a GAP level focused on food safety and environmental protection and a CoC level addressing the quality of the inputs to the farming system and social responsibility. Standards were developed by NAFIQAVED in consultation with a range of national and international shrimp experts and with representatives of the shrimp industry. Efforts towards the development of standards for shrimp hatcheries and other aquaculture commodities are ongoing. In response to increased competition with imported aquatic products and reduced consumer confidence in seafood products, in 2005 the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department (AFCD) of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of China developed the Accredited Fish Farm Scheme for supporting locally grown aquatic products on the Hong Kong market by promoting the implementation of GAP and hygiene standards and it also responsible for conducting farm inspections, providing ongoing technical support and issuing certificates. Standards have been developed for environmental management of both saltwater and freshwater systems and feed and animal health management. The Marine Aquarium Council (MAC) is an international non-profit organization. It was set up by a multistakeholder group. The development of MAC Core Standards was initiated in 1999 and, through a process of multistakeholder consultations, led to the publishing of the standards in The MAC includes a network of over

21 partners from conservation groups, the aquarium industry, hobbyists and governments. The MAC established a certification scheme to ensure the sustainability of capture, culture and trade of marine ornamentals. The International Standards Organization (ISO) is an NGO constituted by a network of the national standards institutes of 157 countries, with one member per country. The ISO has developed a wide range of standards for performing different steps in conformity assessment. From 1947 to date the ISO has published more than standards covering a wide range of sectors, including the food industry. Most ISO standards are highly specific to the production of particular products. The recently issued ISO 22000:2005 standard, concerning the management of food safety issues, is relevant to any organization involved in any aspect of the food chain and, as such, it too concerns the aquaculture sector. International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) is a global grassroots umbrella organization which, since its establishment in France in 1972, has grown to include 750 member organizations involved with organic agriculture production and operating in 108 countries. IFOAM Basic Standards can be applied to the production, processing and marketing of crop, livestock and wild products. These include fruit and vegetables, grains, beans, oil crops, honey, livestock, textile crops and others. The latest version of the Basic Standards (2005) includes a chapter specific to aquaculture. The eight CBs IFOAM accredited to certify aquaculture establishments operate in a wide range of species such as tilapia, carp, red drum, sea bass, sea bream (Israel), salmon, trout, cod (Norway), nile tilapia and butter fish (Thailand). Naturland (Association for Organic Agriculture) was developed in 1982 in Germany for conserving the environment and maintaining the natural basis of life by means of organic farming in all fields of agriculture. It has developed standards for the production of a wide range of commodities including fruit, vegetables, honey, livestock and forest management. In 1995, standards for aquaculture production were initialized, first for pond aquaculture, then for salmonids and mussels and other cold water species and in 1999 for shrimp. The Naturland Standards for Organic Aquaculture (2005) now include specific regulations for a range of aquaculture 10

22 commodities. Naturland Standards for processing of agriculture and aquaculture products are also available. The Soil Association is a UK-based body which plays a key role in the campaigning and certification of organic food and farming. Soil Association Standards have been developed for a wide range of commodities. Standards for the aquaculture sector are included in a general aquaculture chapter and five species-specific chapters for Atlantic salmon; trout and arctic char; shrimp; bivalves; carp. Bio Suisse is the umbrella association of Swiss organic farming organizations and producers and includes more than 30 organizations and about farms. In 2000, Bio Suisse adopted standards for organic aquaculture which refer to the farming of organic fish (trout, salmon, carp etc.), although approval for shrimp and mussels may also be obtained. Bio Suisse certified aquaculture products now include salmon and trout in Europe and Pangasius in Viet Nam. Fairtrade Labelling Organizations International (FLO) is a non-profit association of 20 member organizations that promote and market fair-trade FLO-labeled products in their countries. Although the Generic Standards are theoretically applicable to any food commodities but there are no specification for the production and trade of aquaculture commodities as such no FLO-certified aquaculture products. Nevertheless, the FLO has declared its intention to develop standards for fair-trade shrimp and fish on several occasions. The Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI) is an alliance of companies, NGOs and trade union organizations with the target of promoting and improving the implementation of codes of practice that address working conditions throughout the supply chain. In 2002 a prawn working group was set up to implement a project aimed at identifying and developing a strategy to address the social impact of the shrimp farming and fishing industry in India. The Freedom Food scheme was established by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), a UK-based charity established almost 200 years ago. In 2006, Freedom Food standards for the production of farmed salmon were issued, 11

23 covering every aspect of the salmon life cycle from eggs to juveniles, to adults and slaughter. At present Freedom Food salmon is the only aquaculture commodity covered by the scheme and can be purchased only by UK supermarkets. The Label Rouge programme was started in France about 40 years ago by a group of producers with the support of the French Government, which officially created and formalized the Label Rouge scheme. The Label Rouge standards for shrimp were developed by a working group including a wide range of specialists (IFREMER, producers, processors and others). There is now a wide range of Label Rouge-certified aquaculture products including salmon products from Scotland, Norway and Ireland, farmed bass from the Mediterranean, oysters and scallops from France and farmed turbot. The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is an independent non-profit organization that targets environmentally responsible fisheries. The MSC has developed standards to certify sustainable and well-managed fisheries. In 2006, Wal-Mart declared its willingness to source all wild-caught fresh and frozen fish for the North American market from MSC-certified fisheries, therefore ensuring market support to the MSC programme. To date, the MSC has been dealing only with the certification of capture fisheries although its future involvement in the certification of sustainable aquaculture commodities cannot be excluded. The Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) is a non-profit organization that targets sustainability through the protection of the environment, human rights and the social needs of communities. To address concerns arising from shrimp farming, the EJF has a Draft Protocol for Sustainable Shrimp Production and a Consumer Guide to Prawns. The Federation of European Aquaculture Producers (FEAP) is an association of producers currently composed of 28 National Aquaculture Producer Associations from 23 European countries. In order to increase the sustainability of European aquaculture, in 2000 FEAP adopted a Code of Conduct that was developed by experts and producers in collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders. The code is expected to serve as the basis for the development of national level codes of practice. 12

24 Adoption of the code s principles is voluntary although encouraged by FEAP. So far, there is no system to assess compliance to the principles stated in the code. The Swiss Import Promotion Programme (SIPPO) is mandated by the Swiss State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) to promote exports to Switzerland and the European Union. SIPPO has been collaborating with Naturland, COOP Switzerland and stakeholders in Ecuador, Viet Nam, Bangladesh and other countries to help shrimp farmers obtain Naturland organic certification. Although strictly speaking SIPPO is not a standard-setting organization, in 2002 it produced the International Standards for Organic Aquaculture: Production of Shrimp. These standards are said to be based on the Naturland standards and do not appear to differ significantly from them. All of the standards are produced by developed countries in the world for sustainable development of their aquaculture, mainly emphasizing the quality of food. However, most of the aquaculture certification schemes are applied in south-east Asian countries like Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and Cambodia. In Bangladesh partical certification schemes (e.g. HACCP) focusing the processing plants ignoring grow-out farms had been developed for sustainable shrimp export. Over the last 15 years, Pangasius aquaculture become a shape of commercial enterprise and Pangasius are mainly used domestic market as well as it has a great opportunities to export Pangasius in export market. If Bangladesh is interest to enter into the export market with Pangasius it might be faced several challenge due to posing PAD standards on global catfish export market. However, it is a burning issue for Bangladesh to have critical analysis on the current PAD standards being developed by WWF for sustainable Pangasius aquaculture. Thus the present study addresses this analysis with a wide range of stakeholders. 13

25 CHAPTER 3 MATERIALS AND METHODS Pangasius Aquaculture Dialogue (PAD) standards will be applicable in the grow-out farms in the producing countries, although the PAD is being developed with a key focus on Vietnam however, Bangladesh was identified as one of the important Pangasius producing countries with almost a similar agro-ecology of Vietnam to be with PAD. Therefore, PAD standards have to be developed by the stakeholders involved through consensus and a transparent process. The study was conducted to assess stakeholder perceptions on PAD standards in two villages of Bangladesh by using multiple methodological tools because standards is sensitive to the farmers, their perception is very important as they will be the ultimate beneficiary of the standards. 3.1: The study area The present study was conducted in two village s viz. Maddhovtipara (MV) in Trishal upazila and Malotipur (MP) in Muktagacha upazila in Mymensingh district, Bangladesh from March to August, The village MP was selected as high density Pangasius farm while village MV as low. 3.2: General description of study area Mymensingh has the medium-high type land with soil ph varying from 5.5 to 7.5 and is usually unaffected by flooding. The daily average temperature ranges between 11.7 and 24.8 C in the winter and between 25.6 and 32.9 C in the summer (Shamsuddin et al., 2007) indicating aquaculture is suitable in this region. The daily humidity and rainfall varied from 67 to 87% and 8 to 395 mm, respectively. The village Maddhovtipara is situated in Trishal upazila under Mymensingh district where total population is 3,36,797 with 52.36% male and 47.64% female (Source: Banglapedia). The total cultivated area in this Upazila is 26,500 ha while pond surface area is 1510 ha of which 700 ha is used for Pangasius farming (DoF, 2009). In the 14

26 MV, 2000 people are living of which 52% male and remaining 48% female. The total rice producing area is 293 ha while surface area of pond is about 48 ha. Ponds are constructed to rice-fields (Figure 1). The total number of Pangasius farms is 35. Average surface area of each pond is 0.2 ha and average pond area of each farmer is 1.36 ha. The number of small (0.60 ha), medium ( ha) and large farm (above 1.20 ha) are 10, 20 and 5 in village MV respectively. Fig. 2: Map of Pangasius farming village, Moddhovatipara in Trishal. The village Malotipur is located in Muktagacha upazila under Mymensingh district where total population is 366,399 with 51% male and 49% female. The total number of Pangasius farms is about 3,700 with covering total surface area is about 2000 ha. Average Pangasius pond size is about ha (UFO, 2009). In the village MP, 1000 people are living of which 50% male and remaining 50% female. The total number of landless households is 30. Total number of Pangasius farming households is about 150. The total surface area of the village is about 260 ha while only 25% area is used for housing and road construction and the remaining for Pangasius pond construction. In this village there was no any rice-field left and all the rice-fields have been converted to Pangasius ponds (Figure 2). The number of small (0.60 ha), medium ( ha) and large farm (above 1.20 ha) are 50, 80 and 25 in MP, respectively. 15

27 Fig. 3: Map of Pangasius farming village, Malotipur, Muktagacha. 3.3: Methodology used to perform this study The participatory rural appraisal (PRA) tools are a household approaches and methodology that enables rural people to share, enhance and analyze their knowledge of life and conditions, and to plan and act and to monitor and evaluate (Chambers, 1997). This study was conducted using a variety of PRA tools and detailed explanations of these tools are given below: 3.3.1: Collection of secondary information This concerns the collection and review of existing data and information relevant to the area or topic (published and unpublished), like reports, census data, research findings etc. (RUAF, 2004). It was done to collect general background information of Pangasius farming area. The secondary information was collected from Journal article, books, reports, fish marketing centre, chemical seller, upazila fisheries office and other key informants. 16

28 3.3.2: Village resource mapping The village resource map is a tool that helps to learn about a community and its resource base (ETSP, 2003). The primary concern is not to develop an accurate map but to get useful information about local perceptions of resources. It was made to identify Pangasius farm, aquaculture resources, deep tubewell, homestead, road etc. in the study village. The participant groups drew the resource maps at the beginning of the PRA sessions on a large sheet of paper. The physical characteristics of the community, particularly the homestead, road, Pangasius farm and its related resources, were drawn carefully : Timeline analysis Timeline analysis is a PRA tool that may help to understand the past better and use this understanding to analyze the present situation (Zuijlen, 2002). It is also a helpful tool for creating rapport with the community by showing interest in their history and asking them about something anyone can explain about. It is also important to find out general information and important events in the recent village history. Timelines were done to know the recent historical major events as well as developmental background of the Pangasius aquaculture in the study area. Farmers were asked questions and the researchers written their answers on drawing paper for all to see, thus showing changes in the community over a period of time : Well-being ranking Well-being ranking is a PRA tool used to find out who the poor (or the rich) are in a particular community. It also enables researchers to learn what criteria local people use to determine wealth and how one can become richer/poorer. Well-being ranking was done to evaluate wealth categories of the Pangasius farmer and non-farmer in the study villages (Zuijlen, 2002). At first, a numbered list was made of all the households of the village and the name of each household head and corresponding household number was written on a separate card. Then some participants who knew the village and its inhabitants very well were asked to sort the cards in as many piles as there were wealth categories in the community, using their own criteria. After 17

29 sorting, participants were asked for the wealth criteria for each pile and differences between the piles (Plate 1 and 2). Finally, the participants grouped the households into five categories and then each category cards were tagged for further application : Activity matrix and ranking Activity matrix and ranking is a useful tool for assessing the relative importance of different activities in people s livelihoods (Conroy, 2002). This matrix was used to determine major activities in the faming villages and their relative importance. The major activities of the farming village were written on the Y-axis of a drawing paper while name of the participants were written on the X-axis (Plate 3). Then participants scored and ranked their major activities emphasizing contribution to their livelihood in terms of income, time spent etc : Seasonal calendar A seasonal calendar is a participatory tool which shows the temporal dimension of resource uses (Conroy, 2002) or applies to explore seasonal changes of activities. This tool was drawn to know about changes in activities of the farmers over the year and to show the seasonality of agriculture and aquaculture activities, livestock farming and other non-farming activities. The months were written on the top of a normal paper while activities were written on the left side indicating agriculture, Pangasius aquaculture, livestock husbandry, vegetable culture, orchard farming, small business and other non-farming activities : Semi-structured interview Semi-structured interview is a discussion in an informal and conversational way, structured by using a list of key issues that is prepared in advance. Semi-structured interviews are often used in combination with other PRA exercises (RUAF, 2004). This was done to know the general information of the farming village as well as the impacts of Pangasius farming on livelihood of peoples. An interview schedule was prepared, listing a predetermined set of questions or issues as checklists. The respondents were given a great deal of flexibility. Within the list of topics or subject areas, the interviewer was free to pursue certain questions in greater depth. 18

30 3.3.8: Food consumption matrix and ranking Food consumption matrix and ranking is a PRA tool which use to identify important food items in peoples meal. This matrix is a double entry grid that can be used to explore two sets of variables. Once the main food items have been identified, participants should be asked what criteria they think are important when making comparisons between them. When these have been agreed, the foods can be compared and scored, and then ranked in importance (Conroy, 2002). The main food items of the farming village were written on the left side of a normal paper while criteria of the foods were written on the top (Plate 4). The respondents scored and ranked the food items in terms of cheap, availability, depend on income, freshness, good for child and taste : Focus group discussions Focus group discussions (FGD) are group interviews with small groups of people who have some common interest or characteristic (such as being migrants or non-migrants (RUAF, 2004). The FGD should be held in appropriate privacy in an environment that is comfortable and familiar to the group members. The FGDs were done to identify the impacts of Pangasius farming and stakeholders perceptions on PAD standards. At the beginning these sessions, the seven issues and specific standards of PAD documented by WWF were discussed under the guidance of the researcher. After finishing the discussion, the researcher took detailed notes of the discussion, using as much as possible the exact words of the group members. Two separate sessions were done for Pangasius farmers and non-farmers who mainly depend on Pangasius aquaculture for their livelihood : Case study Case study is a valuable method of research, with distinctive characteristics that make it ideal for many types of investigations. It can also be used in combination with other methodological tools. Its use and reliability should make it a more widely used methodology, once its features are better understood by potential researchers (Tellis, 1997). Case study was done with Pangasius farmer and non farmer in both villages indicating culture technology, impacts of Pangasius farming on their households as well as livelihood. 19

31 Plate 1: Well-being ranking was done by Pangasius farmer Plate 2: Well-being ranking was done by non Pangasius farmer Plate 3: Activity matrix and ranking was done by Pangasius farmer Plate 4: Food consumption matrix was done by Pangasius farmer 20

32 CHAPTER 4 RESULTS As multiple methodological tools were used to conduct this study, outcomes derived from different tools were arranged both separately and combinedly depending on the research objectives. Generally PRA tools were used to assess general background of Pangasius farming, impacts of Pangasius aquaculture on stakeholder and perceptions of stakeholder on PAD standards and secondary information were also collected and summarized in tabular and graphical forms. 4.1: Historical development of Pangasius aquaculture Pangasius farming has started commercially by a private enterprise named Al-Falah Fisheries since 1993 in a village very closed to MV. Afterwards, Pangasius farming was steadily expanding in Trishal where the study village was selected in which farming being started commercially since 1996 by an individual farmer named Mr. Zakir Hossain. Then other farmers converted their rice-field to Pangasius ponds construction gradually. Pangasius pellet machine became available for feed preparation at the farm level since However, during , due to declining market price, about 30% Pangasius farming stopped by the poorer farmers. Currently (2009), market price is getting up and farmers are starting Pangasius farming again (Appendix 1) in MV village. At present there are 35 Pangasius farms in operation in the village, MV. In the village MP, Pangasius aquaculture started commercially since 1996 by a farmer, named Mr. Emdadul Haq who was abroad for longtime. Gradually, all the households having rice-fields converted into Pangasius farms (Appendix 2). In 1999, locally pellet machine became available in MP and currently 70% of feed used in Pangasius farming are prepared at household level. Farmers also started to purchase commercial feed and for this reason, a commercial feed mill (Rahat Feed Mill) established in this village in During the period , small-scale farmers who purchased feed at credit faced great financial lose due to sudden fall down of Pangasius market price. On the other hand, farmers who were larger having saved money keeping the fish for longer period sold larger fish and earned higher income. 21

33 However, farmers again started Pangasius farming with full mode in 2009 as market price is higher and during this study, there are 150 Pangasius farmers operating their farming in village MP. 4.2: Culture technology The detailed Pangasius farming aspects in the village MV and MP are shown in the Appendix 3 & 4, respectively. After dewatering of ponds, lime was applied at the rate of 185kg/ha in MV while 250kg/ha in MP and salt also used at the rate of 50kg/ha in both villages. Then the ponds were filled with water from shallow pump installed within the farm area. Generally, over wintered Pangasius fingerlings were stocked in ponds at the rate of 50,000/ha in MV and 60,000/ha in MP. Farmers also stocked carps fingerling in their ponds as additional production. Feeds were prepared using rice bran, dry fish, meat and bone meal, soybean meal, maize meal, wheat flour, mustard oilcake, vitamin and calcium and salt and Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) calculated by the farmer was about feed: fish=2:1. Feed ingredients particularly meat and bone meal was imported by the dealers. Fish meal used are originated from dry fish locally as well as imported. Generally, farmers discharged pond water 1-3 times during 7-8 months culture period and fill up with their own shallow pump while there is no scope to discharge pond water in village MP. Fish is reared for 7-8 months and individual fish weight gain was about 1kg in MV. However in MP, generally fish cultured about 6 months and at the time individual Pangasius growth was about 600g. Total Pangasius production was about ton/ha of which carps production was about 2.27 ton/ha in MV and Pangasius production was about 38 ton/ha in MP. Fish was sold from the farm directly to the whole seller who then sold fish to wholesale market and carps fish were marketed to the arat (wholesale market) and sold there. 4.3: Well-being status of Pangasius farmer According to well-being analysis carried out by both Pangasius farmers and nonfarmers in triplicate in two villages emphasizing their wealth, income, education etc. and majority of the households were belonged to poorest group (Figure 4 & 5). In MP, farmers from all level of well-being groups developed Pangasius farms. However, some of the poorer farmers in MP reported that they had to convert their 22

34 rice-fields to Pangasius ponds because their rice plots was under water logging due to development of Pangasius farms around their land. Fig.4: Well-being ranking of Pangasius farmers in the village MV Fig.5: Well-being ranking of Pangasius farmers in the village MP 4.4: Major activities and ranking Pangasius farmers had different activities of which Pangasius farming was found to be the main activity as reported by most of the farmers in the MV (Table 2). Nonfarmers living in the MP were engaged with relatively lower number activities compared to Pangasius farmers (Table 3 & 4). On the other hand, Pangasius farmers were engaged with other different activities. 23