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March 23 ,2021
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A Chinese-owned seafood company, Grandeast Inc has invested US$25m in a plant here and large amounts of shrimp are currently being processed.

This was disclosed yesterday in a release by the Ministry of Agriculture.

The release said that Grandeast Inc. is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fuz-hou Hongpu Aquatic Pro-ducts Co., Ltd. in Fujian, China, a company specialising in “processing and trading of fishery products”.



Government and company officials outside of the plant
(Ministry of Agriculture photo)
CCold storage and other facilities at the plant
(Ministry of Agriculture photo)

The ministry said that the facility was constructed at a cost of US$25 million and is outfitted with modern seafood processing equipment.

The announcement comes amid ongoing concerns about the clandestine issuance of two seabob trawling licences by the ministry earlier this year, the basis for which has not been explained. Questions had also been raised as to whether or not Chinese interests had been behind the acquisition of the two licences.

During a tour of the facility yesterday, Agricul-ture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha said that he welcomed the market opportunities being presented to local fishermen by the processing facility.

“So far I am quite impressed with the facility. This was a massive investment and it provides a ready market for our fishermen. Most of this company’s suppliers are fishermen from the West Coast of Demerara. Today we were able to witness the entire processing procedure for one of their products. The General Manager would’ve indicated that there is a ready market for this particular type of processed shrimp in China with room for expansion in the market. Our local fishermen would usually discard certain species of shrimp because there was no market for them locally. This company has provided that market and fishermen are now encouraged to work more hours weekly to satisfy the demand. As a government, we support these types of investments and we will continue to support investments that benefit the people and the development of this country,” Mustapha said.

According to the release, General Manager of Grandeast Inc. Wu Junyu said that the company has provided employment for up to 240 persons so far. He also said that this was the first phase of the company’s local operations and that plans are being broached  for the commencement of phases two and three. Junyu also said that with the company looking to expand, it will require more produce from local fishermen in order to supply its Asian market.

Sustainable fishing in Guyana’s waters has been a major issue in recent years and it is unclear whether this has been taken account of in the permitting of new processing companies.

The release said that Hong Dong Fisheries Co., Ltd., which is the holding enterprise of Fuzhou Hongpu Aquatic Products Co., Ltd is involved in “ocean fishing, fishery base operations, cold chain logistics, fish processing, import and export trade, marine biology research, and aquatic product market operations management”.  The release added that it is the largest comprehensive fishery enterprise in China with the largest number of fishing vessels, many product categories, and a complete industrial chain.

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This may be the mystery company that clandestinely received the two seabob trawling licences from the Ministry of Agriculture earlier this year.

Where is the transparency ?

Django
Last edited by Django
@Django posted:

This may be the mystery company that clandestinely received the two seabob trawling licences from the Ministry of Agriculture earlier this year.

Where is the transparency ?

Opening the plant has nothing to do with trawler licenses. The company will be buying prawns from existing businesses.

R

...the plot becomes clear now. Words cannot describe the absolute crookishness of these people. This, the restart of public executions in the street, massive drug shipments intercepted etc. is just the start. Stay tuned.

FM
@Former Member posted:

...the plot becomes clear now. Words cannot describe the absolute crookishness of these people. This, the restart of public executions in the street, massive drug shipments intercepted etc. is just the start. Stay tuned.

This is irrelevant. It has nothing to do with the topic. 

R

'discard certain species of shrimp' ? They must have been stupid! The Chinese eat everything! There are no.insects left in China! Soon you will be able to swim up at the Seawall without fear of jellyfish, shark or anything else! Be grateful!

FM
@Former Member posted:

'discard certain species of shrimp' ? They must have been stupid! The Chinese eat everything! There are no.insects left in China! Soon you will be able to swim up at the Seawall without fear of jellyfish, shark or anything else! Be grateful!

It shows that you know nothing about the fishing industry in Guyana.

They package the shrimps (prawns) and ship them to the United States and Canada.

@cain posted:

I hope we ain't gonna read in the papers about coke in de strimps.

Maybe coke in queriman, not shrimps.

R

Why did the Guyanese 'discard certain species of fish'? They.could have sent them to the US,  couldn't they, Captain Manatee? The US was concerned about Chinese fishing off South.America as I recall! Jagdeo. is encouraging.a run around.that, huh?

FM

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