The Central Institute of Freshwater Aquaculture (CIFA) through its two-year long extensive research has come out with an advanced fish vending cart with cold storage system and a mechanism to ensure hygiene.
The facility made over the existing cart structure has four chambers for different purposes. The largest one has been designated for storage of fish and is made up of insulated walls which can help ensure freshness of fish for a longer period with the use of ice.
These carts also have water containers which could be used to drain out the water through a tap. A separate platform to cut the fish during sale has also been provided which is equipped with a tap, a rack for soap, a towel handle and a drain that releases the used water into a common waste storage chamber.
The chamber would not only contain the waste water but also the biomedical waste generated when the fishes are processed before sale. This helps maintain the hygiene. According to officials, it is likely to prove a boon for fish sellers and would attract the customers too.
Speaking to Orissa POST, principal scientist of CIFA B C Mohapatra said, “These carts are likely to attract customers as hygiene is better maintained under the improved mechanism. Proper arrangements have been put in place to ensure more storage of fish as compared to conventional methods where fish is sold through cycles. Now we are executing the trial run and the mobile units will hit the streets soon.”
According to CIFA officials, states like Orissa and Andhra Pradesh, among others, which have appreciable fish production, have evinced their interests to adopt the unique technology. Talks with authorities concerned are underway and the facility is likely to hit markets through large manufactures.
According to scientists involved in the manufacturing of the modern facility, the cart would weigh around 10 quintal and has been fitted on a cart having three rickshaw wheels. The facility was produced under All India Coordinated Research Project on Plasti-Culture Engineering and Technology from the CIFA scientists.