Puerto Hualtaco, El Oro, Ecuador – 6 July 2026
Every meaningful transformation begins with a first step.
The challenges facing shrimp farming today, from environmental pressures and climate change to market uncertainty and the need to strengthen coastal livelihoods, cannot be solved by a single project or a single organization. Building a more sustainable future requires collaboration, trust, innovation, and a shared commitment from everyone connected to the shrimp value chain.
It is with this vision that EXPARDEC and the Association of Border Shrimp Farmers (ASOCAM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), establishing a framework for long-term collaboration to promote sustainable development, innovation, knowledge exchange, capacity building, and strategic partnerships that contribute to strengthening Ecuador's mangrove-associated shrimp farming sector.
ASOCAM is a legally established, non-profit producers' association representing approximately 137 shrimp farmers in Puerto Hualtaco and its surrounding area. Together, its members manage nearly 2,600 hectares of shrimp production developed primarily under traditional farming systems associated with mangrove ecosystems.
Through this Memorandum, both organizations establish a platform to explore future initiatives including:
- Capacity building and knowledge exchange for shrimp farmers and other coastal resource users;
- Sustainable aquaculture and environmental conservation;
- Innovation and digital transformation;
- Pilot initiatives that generate practical solutions;
- Partnerships with universities, government agencies, private companies, NGOs and international organizations working toward a more sustainable shrimp sector.
The Memorandum does not establish financial commitments or the immediate implementation of specific projects. Rather, it provides a collaborative framework through which future initiatives may be jointly developed whenever opportunities align with the shared objectives of both organizations.
At EXPARDEC, we believe that achieving truly sustainable shrimp farming requires strengthening every part of the value chain, not only production itself. We also believe that sustainability can only be considered truly sustainable when it balances its three inseparable dimensions: environmental stewardship, social well-being, and economic viability. Progress in one or even two of these dimensions should never come at the expense of the others.
Farmers, workers, processors, exporters, researchers, technology providers, financial institutions, governments, consumers, and development partners all have a role to play in shaping a shrimp sector that is resilient, inclusive, and capable of creating long-term value for both people and nature.
For many small and medium-scale producers, access to knowledge, technology, strategic partnerships, financing, and markets remains a significant challenge. We believe that creating opportunities across these areas is just as important as developing new technologies. Lasting sustainability depends not only on producing shrimp responsibly, but also on ensuring that the people behind the industry have opportunities to innovate, adapt, and prosper.
EXPARDEC was founded on a simple belief: meaningful change happens when people who share the same purpose have the opportunity to work together. We aspire to connect producers with knowledge, innovation with practical realities, local challenges with global opportunities, and sustainability with economic development.
Although this Memorandum begins in Ecuador, many of today's challenges are shared by shrimp-producing countries around the world. We hope that the partnerships, experiences, and solutions developed together can contribute not only to Ecuador's shrimp sector but also inspire collaboration wherever communities seek to build a more sustainable future for aquaculture.
We know that meaningful change does not happen overnight. It is built through relationships, continuous learning, shared responsibility, and many small steps taken consistently over time.
This Memorandum is not the destination. It is one more step toward the future we hope to help build, a shrimp sector where environmental stewardship, social inclusion, and economic prosperity reinforce one another, creating opportunities not only for producers, but also for workers, families, businesses, researchers, coastal communities, and future generations.
We sincerely thank ASOCAM for its trust and for choosing to take this step alongside us. We look forward to learning together, growing together, and transforming shared ideas into actions that create lasting value for people, nature, and the future of shrimp farming.