Jebel Ali Free Zone will get UAE’s first shrimp farm using latest sustainability practices

Jebel Ali Free Zone will get UAE’s first shrimp farm using latest sustainability practices

Dubai: The first shrimp farm in the region to be built on updated sustainability practices will come up in Jebel Ali Free Zone. This follows agreement between Prime Aquaculture, a subsidiary of Emirates National Aquaculture, with JAFZA for a ‘shrimp RAS farm’. It should ready to launch operations by first quarter 2023. The project is the latest aimed at building sufficient food production capacity in the UAE and thus raise food security. “The UAE’s food trade exceeds Dh100 billion annually, and food and beverage investments in the nation stand at a total of Dh62 billion,” said Abdulla Bin Damithan, CEO and Managing Director, DP World UAE and Jafza. “This is proof that the F&B sector is one of the most lucrative industries driving the UAE’s economy. “We believe that strategic partnerships and technological investments in this sector are critical to enhance production efficiency and ensure its security over the longer term.” The current shrimp farming method, also known as a semi-intensive culture system, is an open pond system that requires a lot of space. RAS not only recirculates water, but also maintains control over all of the water’s “physio-chemical qualities”. (RAS stands for ‘recirculation aquaculture systems’.) The Jebel Ali facility