Business slow for NAM coastal Mussels traders after harvesting ban

Namibian government's decision to close off the Walvis Bay Production Area for mussel harvesting after mussel samples from the production area were confirmed for diarrheic shellfish poison, has brought mussels sector trade in the area to a halt.

According to traders, the once thriving mussels business was much slower.

Peter Schneider, Manager of Kuiseb Marine Farming who runs a mussels business said that operations have come to a standstill. Kuiseb Marine Farming had to close doors for operations for three months because of the poisoning.

"We cannot harvest mussels at all during this time. This means that there is no product coming in and there aren't products to sell either, unless we have stock left over from before," said Schneider on Friday.

The situation is expected to persist as there are no solutions in sight and traders have to wait until the time the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources declares mussels fit for consumption.

"What we can do from our side is to harvest as much mussels as possible during the periods we are allowed to in efforts to build up on our stock," said the mussels trader and farmer.

The mussels sector generates about half a million Namibian Dollars (about 37,000 U.S. dallars) in revenue per year with five tons of mussels harvested in a month. Endit