Marine prawn hatchery and grow-out trials in Kenya

Kenya's mariculture sector remains substantially underdeveloped despite a favourable coastline, largely due to dependence on wild-caught seed that is seasonal, unreliable, and of inconsistent quality. The establishment of a dedicated marine hatchery at the KMFRI Shimoni Centre addresses this critical bottleneck by demonstrating the technical feasibility of domestically produced prawn seed with direct implications for coastal food security and livelihoods. Two spawning cycles in 2024 produced approximately 600,000 larvae across three penaeid species. The July cycle confirmed hatchery protocol effectiveness under local conditions, while the October cycle yielded approximately 15,000 post-larvae of Fenneropenaeus indicus and 2,000 of Metapenaeus monoceros. Penaeus semisulcatus larvae did not survive beyond the mysis stage. Significant post-larval mortality occurred during temporary external holding and handling, resulting in 3,800 F. indicus and 1,500 M. monoceros being available for community stocking, highlighting the critical importance of proper holding conditions and minimal handling stress during transportation. Post-larvae were distributed to two community pilot sites – Tsunza (Kwale County) and Ihaleni (Kilifi County) – for a seven-month grow-out evaluation. Performance varied substantially between sites. At Tsunza, F. indicus achieved 61.7% survival, 48.6 g mean harvest weight, and a specific growth rate of 3.75% day⁻¹, supported by consistent pond management and predator control. At Ihaleni, only M. monoceros survived (23.6% survival, 11.3 g harvest weight, 3.05% day⁻¹), with F. indicus experiencing complete production failure due to infrastructure deficiencies and inconsistent management. Capacity-building sessions enhanced farmer technical knowledge, with women and youth demonstrating consistent engagement in production and record-keeping activities. These findings confirm the technical operability of domestic prawn seed production and the social feasibility of community-managed systems.