Indonesia can become world’s largest shrimp exporter: Delos

Jakarta (ANTARA) – Indonesian aquaculture-tech company Delos has said it believes that Indonesia can become the world’s largest shrimp exporter.

Indonesia has been able to surpass some of the largest shrimp exporting countries so far, which are India, Ecuador, and Vietnam, chief executive officer of Delos, Guntur Mallarangeng, said in a statement issued in Jakarta on Tuesday.

However, more than 50 percent of the archipelago’s shrimp farming industry is not being taken seriously. Its value is more than half of the current total value of marine products. Imagine if that potential is fully utilized, Indonesia will be number one, he remarked.

With a coastline measuring 54 thousand km, abundant coastal human resources, and a supportive tropical climate, Indonesia should be able to become a global leader in sustainable aquaculture, Guntur said.

In terms of technology and practices, Delos has departed from the conventional shrimp ponds of Dewi Laut Aquaculture (DLA) and the digitalization of Alune Aqua.

According to Guntur, Delos combines science, technology, and good management practices to increase shrimp farm productivity and increase yields above average, to around 40 tons per hectare.

Since November 2021, he said, the company is on track to onboarding 100 hectares of intensive and super-intensive shrimp farms, with an existing demand backlog of more than 600 hectares in the pipeline.

“We want to push Indonesia to realize and harness the true potential of its vast seas, making them into major, and sustainable, national economic drivers in the near future,” he added.

On March 23, Delos raised US$8 million in an extension seed round, co-led by MDI-KB’s Centauri and Alpha JWC Ventures, with initial seed investors topping up and new strategic angel investors following on.