Dried fish has huge export potential: CCCI president

Bangladesh has the potential to export dried fish after meeting local demands if the taste, quality and nutritional value of the processed fish can be kept intact, said Chattogram Chamber of Commerce & Industry (CCCI) President Mahbubul Alam.

"Dried fishes are now losing the traditional taste and quality due to flaws in the drying process," he told a seminar on "Safe and Healthy Dried Fish Processing Technology and Assistance in Industrial Establishment" in Chattogram on Saturday.

Speaking as the chief guest at the event, he said, "Flaws in the drying process, especially the use of several chemicals, is decreasing the taste of dried fish."

"This is leading to an increase in the import of the popular food item."

The CCCI president added, "If we can produce dried fish with their nutritional values and taste intact, we can export our local production after meeting local demand."

The potential for dried fish export has also risen due to an increase in the opportunities for fish breeding and fishing in Bangladesh following the acquisition of huge sea boundaries in the Bay of Bengal and the implementation of various government policies, said Mahbubul.

Referring to a recent invention by the Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) to ease the process of drying fish during monsoon, Mahbubul said dried fish processing technologies invented by such science research institutions will create golden opportunities for traders.

The seminar was jointly organised by CCCI and the Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) Speaking about the invention at the event, BCSIR Chairman Prof Md Aftab Ali Sheikh said "In our country, even though the dried fish is processed naturally in the dry seasons, many fish gets rotten in the monsoon season."

There is a great demand for dried fish in different countries of the world. Therefore, BCSIR has taken up the project to produce nutritious chemical-free dried fish to meet the domestic demand and create export opportunities, he added.