TUGUEGARAO CITY, Cagayan (PIA) -- Various government institutions collaborated to establish a mangrove crab hatchery facility in Buguey, Cagayan, the first in the Cagayan Valley Region.

During its recent inauguration, Reynaldo Ebora, executive director of Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (PCAARD), said the establishment of the nursery facility is part of the efforts of the government to boost, sustain, and strengthen the crab industry development program in the country.  

He said they focus now on technology transfer to capacitate the local government units and local crab farmers on the new trend of crab raising.  

Mayor Licerio Antiporda III said the newly established facility is a dream come true to boost the crab industry in the municipality.

Buguey town is known for its crab festival as it is the source of giant mangrove crabs supplied to high-end restaurants and even exported abroad.

"We invested so much in our festival as we want to gain support from government agencies to achieve an adequate and ready supply of crablets to our crab farmers," Antiporda said. 

Through the collaborative efforts of the Department of Science and Technology-Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development(DOST-PCAARRD); the Cagayan State University-Aparri Campus, the Department of Agriculture - Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources-Region 2, and the local government unit colleagues in the local government, the P13 million worth of facility was established and is expected to produce 480,000 crablets annually.

Dr. Emilia Quinitio, a former official of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center–Aquaculture Department and an exporter of crablets, said one of the challenges in the country's crablet export industry is the insufficient seed stock. 

“Ten to 50 percent of our seed stocks come from hatcheries and the rest are from the wild,” she said. 

Dr. Quirino Pascua, dean of CSU–Aparri College of Marine Fisheries said the facility comprises seven rectangular concrete tanks, nine circular concrete tanks, 13 circular fiberglass tanks, and three reserve concrete tanks.

He also said, that as the first crab hatchery in the region, the facility committed to providing solutions to the dwindling stock sources in the wild and addressing the high cost of crablets in the country. 

Other crab hatchery and nursery facilities were also established in Quezon, Capiz, and Maguindanao provinces. (OTB/GVB/PIA Region 2)