Australia: Scientists successfully spawn barramundi cod

Thursday, July 05, 2001, 23:50

http://fis.com/fis/aquaculture/

For the first time ever in Australia scientists have succeeded in spawning captive barramundi cod.

The scientists, from the Darwin Aquaculture Centre, worked in close
co-operation with scientists from Indonesia, said Primary Industry and
Fisheries Minister Mick Palmer.

Speaking about the achievement in Parliament earlier this week, Minister Palmer said the spawning was an important step forward in the barramundi cod research project.

"Our close working relationship with the Gondol Research Laboratory in Indonesia and the exchange of scientific information on this project have contributed to this success, which allows us to take the next step towards developing commercial production of barramundi cod in Australia," Mr Palmer said.

Barramundi cod is a very high value species on the live export market, and according to a press release currently fetches AUD 80 - AUD 100 per kg on the Hong Kong and southern Chinese markets.

The lucrative species is very popular in Asia, where demand for its
succulent flesh is increasing. The barramundi cod grows to the perfect
eating size of 1-2 kg within just 24 months, making it an ideal species for quick returns, said Mr Palmer.

However, barramundi cod and golden snapper have a problem of high mortality in the larval rearing stage, he added.

"The Darwin Aquaculture Centre developed an innovative technique using copepods for the production of golden snapper and we now hope to apply this technology to barramundi cod," Mr Palmer said.

"We've achieved survival rates of up to 40 per cent in golden snapper using our copepod technology, compared to survival rates of one to four per cent at other research centres."

Results of the rearing trials for barramundi cod should be known in six
weeks.

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