Andhra Pradesh seeks shrimp feed relief

N. Chandrababu Naidu asked India’s central government for relief after a run-up in shrimp-feed costs hit aquaculture farmers in Andhra Pradesh, according to state government statements and local media reports. The Andhra Pradesh chief minister said higher prices for feed raw materials were raising cultivation costs for shrimp farmers in India’s biggest shrimp-producing state. He urged New Delhi to step in on raw-material availability and price monitoring. The request came days after the state government said feed manufacturers had agreed to suspend a proposed feed-price increase following talks with ministers and farmer groups. ### Who did Naidu write to, and what did he ask for? The Hindu reported on May 13 that Naidu wrote to Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal seeking urgent intervention over the rise in shrimp-feed raw-material prices. Hindustan Times and Deccan Chronicle, citing an official release published on May 17, said Naidu wrote to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan seeking steps favorable to aquaculture farmers. (hindustantimes.com) Naidu asked the centre to regulate prices of shrimp-feed raw materials, ensure adequate domestic availability and consider easing import restrictions on soybean meal and soy oil, which he described as major feed ingredients, The Hindu said. He also proposed a monitoring mechanism to track feed-price fluctuations and improve supply-chain transparency. (thehindu.com) ### What number best captures the pressure on farmers? Naidu said the increase in raw-material prices was imposing an additional burden of nearly 25,000 rupees per tonne on aquaculture farmers, according to The Hindu and The New Indian Express. State officials said the higher feed bill was increasing cultivation costs across shrimp-producing districts. (thehindu.com) eFeedLink reported on May 11 that feed manufacturers in Andhra Pradesh had proposed raising prices by 12 rupees per kilogram for vannamei shrimp feed and 14 rupees per kilogram for tiger shrimp feed. That proposal followed a 4-rupee-per-kilogram increase in February, the report said, citing manufacturers’ claims that costs for fishmeal, fish oil, minerals, binders and soybean had risen between January and April. (thehindu.com) ### What happened inside Andhra Pradesh before the letter went to Delhi? Agriculture and Fisheries Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu held a video conference with feed manufacturers, aqua farmer associations and senior officials on May 13, The New Indian Express reported. After that meeting, the Shrimp Feed Manufacturers Association told the government in writing that the proposed price increase would be suspended, the newspaper said. (efeedlink.com) Atchannaidu objected to what he called a unilateral increase in feed prices and told companies not to add to farmers’ hardship, according to The New Indian Express. The state government said a joint meeting of farmers, manufacturers and officials would be held on May 15 to try to reach a mutually acceptable solution. (newindianexpress.com) ### Why is soybean showing up in a shrimp-feed dispute? Soybean meal and soy oil are key inputs in shrimp-feed manufacturing, Naidu said in his letter, as quoted by The Hindu. His request to relax import restrictions on those products tied the feed-price dispute to the cost and availability of upstream ingredients rather than only to local pricing decisions by feed makers. (newindianexpress.com) eFeedLink said manufacturers had cited soybean among the raw materials behind the proposed increase, alongside fishmeal and fish oil. Farmer representatives disputed the scale of those cost increases and accused manufacturers of using seasonal supply changes to widen margins, according to the same report. ### What comes next in the state’s response? (thehindu.com) The May 15 joint meeting announced by Andhra Pradesh officials was the next named step in the state’s effort to contain feed costs, according to The New Indian Express. At the national level, Naidu asked the central government to act on raw-material supply, import policy and price monitoring, with Piyush Goyal and Shivraj Singh Chouhan named in published reports as the ministers he contacted. (newindianexpress.com) (efeedlink.com)