TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Edhy Prabowo claimed there is a high potential of lobster stock in Indonesian waters. From Sabang to Merauke, the commodity produces 27 billion eggs throughout the year.

“With an assumption that one lobster lays 500,000 eggs,” said Edhy in a public discussion of Bincang Karya (Bianka) on Wednesday, July 15.

However, he opined that the potential would not develop if the commodities are left at sea, given its possibility to grow in the wild sea is only 0.02 percent. By means, only one out of 20,000 eggs will survive and grow.

It would be a different case if the commodity is cultivated by fishermen, the minister added. With this method, Indonesia could boost lobster productivity by up to 80 percent of the total eggs.

The cultivation of lobster was once practiced by traditional fishers in the early 2000s. Edhy revealed that at that time, fishermen could increase commodity productivity by up to 30 percent. This was also adopted by Vietnamese fishermen that encouraged the country to be the leading lobster producer.

Edhy Prabowo further ensured that lobster cultivation would not pose a threat to commodity extinction. “Some people think if the eggs are taken, they will be gone. That’s why fishermen are obliged to return two percent of adult lobsters. That means, [the potential number of the commodity] will be 100 times higher,” he said.

Read also: Lobster Politics

FRANCISCA CHRISTY ROSANA