What a disaster after severing diplomatic relations with Taiwan! Honduras’ aquatic products lost more than 500 million in a single season and 60% of white shrimp farms closed down | International | CTWANT

After the change in Taiwan’s diplomacy, Honduras has been unable to sign a free trade agreement with China, and another market, Mexico, announced a ban on the import of aquatic products. As a result, white shrimp farming, an important industry in southern Honduras, suffered heavy losses, with 60% of the local population affected. The white shrimp farms have stopped operating at a loss, and related processing industries have also closed down. At least tens of thousands of people have lost their jobs as a result. “This is all the fault of the most disastrous and incompetent liberal government in the history of Honduras, which has severed ties with Taiwan and cannot guarantee new markets for its exports,” the Honduran congressman denounced.

In 2023, Taiwan-Hong Kong diplomatic relations changed, and Honduras switched to the embrace of mainland China under the instruction of President Xiomara Castro. However, due to the delay in negotiating a free trade agreement between China and Honduras, and another large market, Mexico, announcing a ban on the import of shrimp from Honduras, the important industry in southern Honduras, “white shrimp farming,” has now Facing a crisis of collapse. Hongguo media has recently published many reports exposing the miserable situation of shrimp farmers, saying that at least 60% of local farms have ceased operations, and related processing industries have also closed down. At least tens of thousands of people have lost their jobs as a result, and the overall shrimp farming industry may have On the verge of collapse.

According to the Honduran media “El Heraldo” (El Heraldo), due to poor political decisions, lack of government support and the closure of international markets, in the southern coastal city of Honduras, you can see that tens of thousands of job opportunities have been created, The white shrimp farms that drive Hong Kong’s economic growth are suffering from a serious existential crisis because shrimp farmers have worked hard to raise large quantities of white shrimps but have no market to sell them.

A reporter from the Herald visited the area and found that the lagoon that was originally used as a breeding ground is now almost completely dry and unmaintained. The National Aquaculture Association of Honduras (Andah) stated that of the 420 white shrimp farms registered during the peak period, at least 250 have now ceased operations, with a closure rate as high as 60%, and thousands of employees have been laid off. No livelihood.

To make matters worse, after these shrimp farmers produce white shrimp, they would originally be frozen and sent to the place of purchase, or shipped to factories in surrounding areas for processing before being sold to domestic and overseas markets. However, now only the domestic market is left for sale, international capital has withdrawn investment, and factories have ceased operation, leading to a series of unemployment, immigration, loss of skilled labor and more and more serious poverty problems.

It is estimated that in the first quarter of 2024 alone, it will cause a foreign exchange loss of 20 million U.S. dollars (approximately NT$650 million), the severance of diplomatic relations with Taiwan will cause a loss of approximately 16 million U.S. dollars (approximately NT$520 million), and the Mexican market will suffer a loss of 4 million. US dollars (approximately NT$130 million).

What devastated the shrimp farmers the most was that the relevant authorities in Honduras did not care about their lives or lives. According to the shrimp farmers, Laura Suazo, head of the Honduran Department of Agriculture and Livestock (SAG), once told them, Even if Honduras stops white shrimp production, “it won’t have any impact.”

Tomás Zambrano, chairman of the National Party of Honduras, publicly accused the authorities on April 24 of being “not interested in the suffering of families who have lost their jobs.” He also said: “This is the worst crisis in the history of Honduras. It is the fault of a disastrous and most incompetent liberal government that severed ties with Taiwan and was unable to secure new markets for their exports.”