Charoen Pokphand Group is to invest RMB 800 million (U.S.$96.6 million) in an integrated aquaculture project in Weihai city in China's Shandong province.
According to the Feed Information Centre web site of the China Feed Industry Association, initial plans are for a seven-story circular building in an area of 6,670,000 square meters, incorporating breeding of aquatic products, processing and feed production facilities. All levels will be served by a central water-recycling system.
The Information Centre report said that CP might let out some of the facilities to local farmers and fishermen and receive compensation in kind.
The assistant chief of marine fisheries department in Shandong province, Liu Yuan Lin said, that CP's huge investment would greatly improve and upgrade the quality of aquaculture in Shandong. With the transfer of advance knowledge and technology to local farmers, the high chemical residue problem will be eliminated and the plant will provide stable employment opportunities for fishermen, he said.
Shandong province is the largest producer of marine products in China. It has more than 15,000 companies in the fishery industry.
Currently, about 290,000 hectares of land are used for aquaculture farming, with output at 3.05 million tonnes. Since the first joint venture fishery company was established in 1987, there are now more than 1,000 fishery-related companies with foreign investments operating in Shandong province.