An Economic Analysis of Freshwater Prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii, Farming in Mymensingh, Bangladesh

Abstract

This paper deals with production systems, cost structure, and profitability of freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii, farming in a new area of Mymensingh district in the north‐central part of Bangladesh. In the study area, prawn farming practice is still extensive, and only a few farmers (20%) cultivate semiintensively. The costs and returns of extensive and semiintensive farming systems are compared. All farmers in different farming systems made a profit, with seed and feed dominating variable costs. Considerable variation in production costs and profitability was observed. Based on the Cobb–Douglas production function model, return to scale indicates that there is scope to increase production and income from prawn farms in extensive and semiintensive systems by applying more inputs (i.e., seed, feed, and fertilizer).

Feasibility of pacific white shrimpLitopenaeus vannameiculture in southern Brazil: effects of stocking density and a single or a double CROP management strategy in earthen ponds

“…(Lambregts, Thacker & Wade 1993). According to Ahmed, Ahammed and Brakel (2008), production cost data may also help the farmers to make decisions and adjustments in the production systems, determining the optimal price level for their final product. The final measure of the economical viability of any production activity is its profitability, which is related not only to the system capacity of production but also to economical factors, such as production costs and market prices.…”

Integrated rice-fish farming in Bangladesh: meeting the challenges of food security

“…Several studies have used a Cobb-Douglas production function analysis in aquaculture, for example catfish farming in Alabama (Nerrie et al 1990), seabass and seabream farming in Greece (Karagiannis and Katranidis 2000), rice-fish culture in India (Goswami et al 2004), and prawn and catfish farming in Bangladesh (Ahmed et al 2008(Ahmed et al , 2010a. The Cobb-Douglas production function model has also been used to assess input-output relationships in agricultural productivity, including rice and wheat (Fulginiti and Perrin 1998;Ozsabuncuoglu 1998;Bakhshoodeh and Thomson 2001;Villano and Fleming 2006).…”

Assessment of External Supports for Harvesting Artisanal Galda (Macrobrachium Rosenbergii de Man) Fisheries from the Sundarbans Mangrove Ecosystem in Bangladesh

“…The existing literature on aquatic species in Bangladesh are by large focused on the farming aspects rather than fishery (Halim et al, 2001;Ling et al, 1999;Huda et al, 2002;Aftabuzzaman, 1998;Thomas et al, 2001;Bhattacharya et al, 1999a and1999b;Leung and Sharma, 2001;Ling et al, 2001;Shang et al, 2001). Most of the economic analyses carried out in the past in Bangladesh were concentrated on aquaculture production of Galda or Bagda shrimps (Shah et al, 2000;Ito, 2002;Ahmed et al, 2008;Alam et al, 2007;Ahmed, 2001;UNEP, 1999;BCAS, 2001;Quddus et al, 2001;Manju, 1996). Exploration of the Sundarban mangroves dates back to the 16th century (Rollet, 1981), a large bulk of published literature exists on the Sundarbans of both India (Naskar and Guha Bakshi, 1987;Chaudhuri and Choudhury, 1994;Guha Bakshi et al, 1999) and Bangladesh (Seidensticker et al, 1991;Hussain and Acharya, 1994;Islam and Wahab, 2005) covering many aspects of their habitat characteristics, flora, fauna (particularly fisheries), utilization and management.…”

“…Bangladesh exported 46,533 mt of prawn and shrimp in 2005 valued at US$ 378 million in which 25-30% was contributed by prawn (DoF, 2006). This figure is expected to rise with the increasing expansion of freshwater prawn cultivation into new area of Mymensingh district in the north-central part of Bangladesh (Ahmed et al, 2008). The total area under cultivation nationwide is estimated to be around 30,000 ha (Willams, 2003).…”