Here’s some good news for fish lovers who worry about the quality of the fish they get from the market.
MIMI Fish, a retail venture of the Fisheries Department, is set to open sales outlets and launch online home delivery services in the State for the supply of fresh fish and value-added products.
Traceability of the product is billed the USP of this initiative. The buyer will be able to track all relevant information about the fish; where it was caught or harvested, details of the fishers involved in the capture or production and their locations. Partner fishing boats of MIMI are given individual RFID-tagged ice boxes, so that the date, time and place of capture of the fish are accessible to the consumer.
The initiative is being implemented by the Kerala State Coastal Area Development Corporation (KSCADC) under its socio-economic initiative ‘Parivarthanam,’ with support from the Central Institute of Fisheries Technology (ICAR-CIFT).
Products on offer
Products immediately on offer include fresh fish, dry fish, fish curry and fish pickles. More value-added products will be added soon. The website of MIMI Fish will be launched by Fisheries Minister Saji Cherian at a function in Kollam shortly.
Initially, MIMI Fish will be introduced in Kollam, Alappuzha and Pathanamthitta districts. It will be extended to other districts in phases, Roy Nagendran, Chief of Operations, Parivarthanam, said.
Why the name
The name ‘MIMI’ has its origins in ‘Meemi,’ the way small children pronounce ‘Meen,’ Malayalam for fish.
Fish sold under the MIMI brand will be free from adulterating materials and follow the hygiene standards set by advanced countries in processing, preservation and storage, they said.
Last year, the Food Safety Department had seized and destroyed thousands of kilos of stale and contaminated fish in Statewide raids.
Besides consumers and fishers, a important beneficiary of this project will be engineering and degree dropouts, who will get part-time jobs of home delivery of MIMI products, and later, they would be given coaching to help them become graduates.
