The first crop of the new fresh water fish being produced in Jamaica – the Pangasius species, known to most Jamaicans as Basa – is on the cusp of hitting both local and international markets.

ALGIX Jamaica, a company with investors from the United States and Jamaica, will today officially open its fish processing plant in Barton Isle, St Elizabeth where the Basa is grown on the sprawling 338-acre property which consists of 98 ponds varying in sizes from half-an-acre to two acres.

The processing plant is the latest addition to what ALGIX Managing Director Maurice Reynolds is describing as the “Basa Revolution”.

At present, ALGIX employs just over 100 workers, but that number is expected to increase in short order.

“With the opening of the processing plant we will be taking on more workers and, of course, we will be aiming to employ people in the various communities close to our plant,” the ALGIX boss told the

Jamaica Observer.

“We have fought long and hard, from going to Vietnam to observe, eventually purchasing breeding stock, the issue of dealing with the Appleton Estate and possible water contamination, and other obstacles, to the point when we will open our processing plant on Friday (today),” Reynolds told the

Observer, while refusing to comment further on the Appleton issue, saying the matter was still before the courts.

Reynolds then broke the news that at present the estimated amount of Basa produced in the last nine months now stands at over 100 tons varying in sizes from two to sometimes eight kilogrammes depending on orders from buyers.

Basa is a near US$2-billion industry in Asia.

“The market – that is our buyers – really dictate to us at ALGIX what sizes to produce and I can inform that while we will sell whole Basa fish, a lot of emphasis will be placed on steaks, as many people refer to fillet fish.

“Our ponds are teeming with Basa at the moment and we are ready and anxious to go, as in our opinion, the Basa fish, because of its size and its taste, will be ripe for the export market where the preferred cut is the fillet and you need a good size fish to achieve proper fillet. The Basa will also be a cheap source of protein for Jamaicans,” Reynolds said, a look of satisfaction yet quiet determination etched on his face.

The ALGIX managing director further said that the completion of the new processing plant, which includes machines for the scaling of fish when necessary, a massive and extremely cold blast freezer, a packaging room and a well-constructed receival ramp, was almost the final link in the chain.

“Well, the new processing area contains the latest state-of-the-art equipment currently in use. ALGIX has gone through all the necessary regulatory processes, and we are just now awaiting one last piece of paper for all systems to go full steam ahead,” he said.

“We have spent quite a bit of money, in fact a lot of money, to build a modern plant to ensure the safety of workers. We have instituted all the safety measures required and we have ensured that we have a clean, environmentally friendly production area, so when the consumers get our fish they are assured of the best in quality,” Reynolds said.

As to orders received so far, Reynolds said he is very encouraged.

“People know about the Basa in Jamaica and North America. ALGIX has been also spreading the news that Basa from Jamaica is now available and we are seeing an increase in the number of purchase orders coming in, especially over the last two months or so, as we get closer to reaping our first crop of Jamaican Basa fish,” he said.

He explained that the Basa is native to Asia, which makes it quite costly to transport from that region to the United States, Canada and South America.

“Now, with Basa being produced in Jamaica, we will have a distinct transport cost, call it geographic, advantage which we hope to exploit to the fullest,” the ALGIX top executive said.

“I should point out that, at the moment, we produce both the Tilapia and Basa varieties of fresh water fish, but with time I am sure the Basa will take over the farm,” Reynolds said.