Maximizing Sea Cucumber Value in Pacific Islands

1. Increasing the value of sea cucumber harvests in Pacific islands Steven Purcell National Marine Science Centre, Southern Cross University, Australia

2. The value of processed sea cucumbers • Value depends on: • Species • Size of the animal • Condition of the animal (damage to body wall) • Quality of processing • Value of tropical sea cucumbers is about AU$10 to AU$600+ per kg in Asian dried seafood markets

3. Potential Stages in Processing • Gutting • Sometimes brief 1st boil then squeeze out guts • Cut: across mouth, on the dorsal surface or on ventral surface • Salting (1 h to 1 week) • Boiling • Removal of spicules from body wall (sandfish and golden sandfish) • Salting after 1st boil • Smoking • Drying • Re-boiling a 2nd time • Re-shaping • Re-drying and re-boiling a 3rd time

4. Preferences of importers and dealers • Some importers do not want smoked smell, some do • Some importers prefer a different placement of the cut in the animals • Salting (problem with too much) • Shape of the dried animal – straight or curved • Colour preferences (from cooking and salt adding) • Damage to body wall (cuts or abrasions)

5. ACIAR project • 1-year scoping study (2011) • 4-year implementation project (2013-1016) Countries involved: • Tonga Ministry of Agriculture & Food, Forests and Fisheries • Kiribati Ministry of Fisheries & Marine Resources Development • Fiji Department of Fisheries

6. Project links and impact pathway

7. Fisher and processor surveys

8. Market analysis in China • Preferences for cutting, smoking and colour among different retailers and consumers. What matters and what doesn’t? • Wholesale and retail prices for sea cucumbers from the Pacific • Other marketed sea cucumber products for tropical species • Frozen and wrapped in half-kilo bags • Vacuum packed and stored at ambient temperature • Imported semi-processed (first boiled, not dried) for processing in China

9. Market analysis in China

10. Implementation project (2013-2016) • Aim: to test socio-economic impacts of improving post-harvest processing by village fishers • Interventions: • Simple village-level manual on processing methods. Local languages. • Training DVD • Village-based training workshops in: Tonga, Kiribati, Fiji

11. Implementation project (2013-2016) Impact testing • Test impacts by before-after comparison of data from questionnaire surveys. E.g.: • Income from selling sea cucumbers • Time invested in fishing – days per week, hours per day • Time invested in processing the catch • Involvement of women and other family members • How income is distributed in communities • Satisfaction of fishers in income they make

12. Implications for other countries • A ‘lighthouse’ project • Would investments in other countries and regions be worthwhile? • What are the socio-economic benefits? • Which interventions were most influential? • What training techniques were most successful? • What types of communities benefited most? • Is this an exercise that can aid the sustainable use of sea cucumber resources?

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