Cairo – From an enemy of fishers, crustacean turns into income opportunity in Egypt. This is Nile crayfish. The animal was brought from the US state of Louisiana in the 1980s to be raised in cages on the Nile River in an area south of Cairo. The project failed, and the crustacean was released into the river, where it found a favorable environment for growth and reproduction in the southern provinces of Egypt.
In an interview with ANBA, the Board chair of Toshkee Misr, Osama El-Sherbiny, told the story of the transformation of the Nile crayfish – also known as the Nile cockroach because it cuts fisher’s nets – into something beneficial and a source of export revenue for the country. Toshkee Misr is an Egyptian company that exports Nile crayfish (pictured above, the production operation).
Problems with crayfish coming from the United States were detected in 2005 when fishers began to complain their nets were being damaged and cut by the crustacean. The General Authority for Fish Resources Development (GFAR) deployed biological control work, but reproduction was high. That is why the crayfish has been nicknamed the Nile cockroach, as it reproduces three times a year, spawning about 500 eggs each time.
According to Sherbiny, an Egyptian researcher published a distress call in a scientific journal, requesting help to fight the crustacean. From that came Spaniards and Chinese to work with the export of crayfish, which allowed fishers to find where to ship the animals.
Toshkee Misr emerged when fishers were dissatisfied with the price offered by the Chinese and established itself as a solid business in the area. The first production unit was installed in the province of Assiut. From late 2017 to early 2018, the company started exporting to the North American market, where Nile crayfish originated.
The company exported four containers in its first year of operation, growing to 100 containers last year. The success story made Egypt one of the three leading exporters of this crustacean, along with China and Spain. There is an excellent opportunity to increase exports from the Arab country in the face of a decline in production in Spain and an increase in consumption in China, which reduced the volume supplied by the Asian country.
Fish and crustaceans occupy second place in the list of food exports from Egypt to the US market, with a total of USD 40 million last year. According to the Board chair of Toshkee Misr, many fish and byproducts have the same growth opportunities as Nile crayfish in global markets, including eels and crabs, but need special care regarding packaging and waste disposal.
Translated by Georgette Merkhan & Elúsio Brasileiro
