Fisheries institute to develop online platform to market fish

KOCHI: In a major initiative to help the fishermen community, consumers and processors, the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) has launched a project to develop an online platform for fish marketing in the country.

The project aims to develop an information system for fish marketing, pricing and to facilitate an e-auctioning system for commercially important fish species. As many as 1,500 fish markets, including landing centres, wholesale markets, retail markets and aquaculture markets, across the country will be included in the system.

The project is funded by the National Fisheries Development Board (NFDB), Hyderabad. In the first phase, information regarding 500 fish markets from seven coastal states will be collected.

The CMFRI will collect the required information and report the weekly fish prices through electronic tabs and will develop an online database. Entire dimensions of the markets such as the geographic location, size, timing, access to transport, arrival and distribution, species traded, infrastructure facility and average realised minimum and maximum price of around 150 fishes will be available on the websites of NFDB (www.nfdb.gov.in) and CMFRI (www.cmfri.org.in) from October. A separate portal will be developed later. A total of 50 markets will be covered in Kerala in the initial stage.

An orientation meet was held to train representatives from selected fish markets across Kerala at CMFRI on Monday.

Better days

The project aims to develop an information system for fish marketing, pricing and to facilitate an e-auctioning system for commercially important fish species