The shrimp production process in Ecuador continues to attract international businessmen, most of whom are buyers interested in doing business with Ecuadorian companies.

After the first delegation that arrived in the country in July 2022, as part of the Shrimp Summit Ecuador, to learn about the sustainable practices of the national shrimp industry, this week fifteen representatives of retail companies and seafood suppliers from the United States, Germany, France, the United Kingdom , Portugal, Spain and Japan arrived at the second edition of the event organized by the Sustainable Shrimp Partnership (SSP) and the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC).

‘The best shrimp in the world’, under the magnifying glass of North American customers

This is in a context where, at $1.872 million, shrimp is the country’s main non-oil and mining export, and its export value increased by 7% in the first quarter of 2023, according to the latest data from the Central Bank. The main destination of Ecuadorian shrimp is China, whose exports in the first three months of this year amounted to 1.151 million dollars.

The delegation, which stayed in the country from June 12 to 14, consisted of representatives of various companies, such as Sam’s Club, Sateway and Foodbuy from the United States; Brakes, from the United Kingdom; and Coop of Japan, among others, reported from the National Chamber of Aquaculture (CNA). The visitors visited farms and shrimp processing facilities.

One of them was the one in Omarsa, located in the canton of Durán. Francisco Vanoni, spokesman for Omarsa, emphasized the importance of generating this type of event that brings Ecuadorian companies closer to the end consumers of their products. “We are an industry that continues to grow. So it is very important to have access to the most important markets and the biggest clients who also demand higher quality standards, and this is what we can offer as Ecuadorian shrimp producers: producers, processors and exporters,” said Vanoni.

Small and medium-sized farmers hope that the sale of concession land for shrimp farms, a proposal submitted in 2022, will now enter as one of the government regulations

For his part, American businessman Anthony Snow, who was part of the delegation, expressed his satisfaction that he was able to assess the Ecuadorian shrimp processing capacity. While Peter Redmond, of the ASC, highlighted the diversification achieved by Ecuadorian shrimp. “It was nice to see the number of value-added products. It’s different compared to what I’ve seen in the past, so it’s good to see product diversification,” said Redmond.

Ben Wheeley from the United Kingdom highlighted the characteristics of Ecuadorian shrimp. “One of the characteristics that seemed remarkable to us was the color; and the taste, but the color was fantastic,” noted the businessman.