It is informed that Good Fortune Bay Fisheries RMI Inc (GFB), a subsidiary of a Queensland, Australia-based fish farming company, has announced the end of its operations in the Marshall Islands. The company said that the main reason behind shutting down the operations is the transportations export costs make the business unfeasible.
Project manager Ben Lawes said that GFB has invested over USD 3 million into operations in Majuro. He also told that uncertainty over export logistics and the cost of shipping live fish from Majuro to Asia and the US has obliged the company to temporarily suspend operations in the north Pacific nation.
Ben opined that the company has been growing barramundi cod and cobia in a fish hatchery in Majuro for more than a year, whilst operating large scale fish hatcheries in two Queensland locations. He also told that recently the cost of the freight for live fish primarily has increased and global downturn in markets has affected the business strategy of this operation.
The new problem, which has now presented itself, is what to do with a thousand of kilos of mature fish in cages in Majuro lagoon. The smaller fish have been killed off, a decision which Lawes said does not come lightly with the money already invested in them.
