INTRODUCTION 



The growth of the domestic shrimp industry since World War II 

 and a groviing interest in sources of supplies have created a demand for 

 detailed information regarding the shrimp fisheries of foreign countries. 



Special interest in information about the shrimp fisheries of 

 Latin America led to the publication of Survey of the Shrimp Fisheries 

 of Central and South America by Milton J, Lindner, now Regional Fisheries 

 Officer of the American Emba"ssy, Mexico City. That report (Special 

 Scientific Report — Fisheries No, 235 - USDI -FWS) contains the results of 

 on-the-spot surveys made by the author during his travels throughout 

 Latin America. While important shrimp fisheries exist throughout the 

 world, detailed information regarding those industries is in many instances 

 fragmentary or unavailable. 



This report has been compiled mainly from Foreign Service Des- 

 patches obtained by the United States Department of State and supplemented 

 by Food and Agriculture Organization data and other sources. Despite the 

 sketchiness of the information on some foreign fisheries, it is felt that 

 the report can provide the reader with a basis for assessing their 

 relative importance. 



In some regions of the world, exi^loratory fishing has been so 

 meager that little is known about potential production. Moreover, even 

 where shrimp stocks are known to be abundant, such problems as inadequate 

 shore facilities, excessive transportation costs, lack of skilled labor, 

 restrictive controls, and shortage of venture capital militate against 

 the establishment of commercial fisheries. 



The largest foreign shrimp fisheries are in Asia, Here, millions 

 of fishermen, using primitive methods for the most part, fish for shrimp 

 and other species of fish and shellfish. The individual fisherman's daily 

 catch is often poor by Western standards, although the aggregate catch may 

 be very large, A modest start has been made in recent years to modernize 

 shrimp fishing and processing methods in some Far Eastern countries, notably 

 in Pakistan and India, 



European waters support long-established and important shrin^ 

 fisheries. In general, the shrimp are small and catches are sufficient 

 only for European markets. 



Except for the Mediterranean area, no information has been 

 assembled about shrimp fisheries for African countries. For most African 

 nations, however, the shrimp fisheries are unimportant. 



Ensuing sections contain information on individual coimtries in 

 each of the principal areas of the world outside of Latin America. 



