Visakhapatnam Port Drives Half of India’s Seafood Exports

Visakhapatnam: Exports of marine products through the Visakhapatnam port accounted for $2.19 billion out of India’s total seafood exports of $7.38 billion during the financial year 2024.

The port’s share stood at 50.87 per cent in 2025 and 48.89 per cent in 2026, reflecting its continued dominance in the country’s seafood trade, based on figures provided by the marine products export development authority (MPEDA).

The ministry of commerce and industry placed this information before Parliament in response to a question from MPs Prabhakar Reddy Vemireddy and CM Ramesh, in relation to implementation of the One District One Product (ODOP) initiative in Andhra Pradesh.

The ODOP initiative, launched by the central department for promotion of industry and internal trade, seeks to select, brand and promote at least one product from each district to ensure balanced regional growth.

Andhra Pradesh has identified 99 products across 26 districts, including Udayagiri wooden cutlery, Paturu cotton silk sarees from Nellore district, Etikoppaka lacquerware, palm leaf and Payakaraopeta silk sarees from Anakapalli district. These have been categorised as primary, secondary and tertiary products under the scheme.

State government data shows that about 100 handloom weavers are engaged in producing Payakaraopeta silk sarees, which have reported a production value of `10.08 crore since their identification under ODOP. The AP handicrafts development corporation has been organising district and state-level exhibitions and training programmes to promote these products.

National and state-level handloom expos are also being conducted under the handloom marketing assistance component of the national handloom development programme. At the same time, collaborations with the handloom export promotion council aim to identify exportable handloom products.

To strengthen marketing and exports, several steps have been undertaken, including participation in domestic and international exhibitions, capacity-building initiatives, and onboarding of products on the Government eMarketplace ODOP Bazaar. At the international level, Indian missions abroad have been promoting ODOP products through buyer-seller meets and exhibitions.

ODOP items have also been included in gifts at multilateral and bilateral meetings.

In the fisheries sector, MPEDA’s Shaphari certification scheme is ensuring the quality and antibiotic-free status of aquaculture products for export, while the fisheries department is supporting traditional fishermen with boats and nets under the PM Matsya Sampada Yojana and promoting seaweed cultivation through self-help groups.

Despite the extensive participation, the Centre has clarified that it did not receive any new proposal from the state government to include additional products under ODOP.