The Kep and Sihanoukville Crab Industry.

Crab Peelers: The Kep and Sihanoukville Crab Industry.

A lot of ex-pats here often ask me about crabs and shrimp, probably because we like to eat them ourselves, but the industry here in Cambodia is much more than selling a few whole crabs to a bunch of barang.

Coastal crab peelers (and shrimp peelers) constitute an important group of working Khmers, containing some of the poorest workers in Cambodia

These workers are mostly made up of women and children (30% of labourers are under 15 and female) receiving low pay for hard labour under insecure terms and unhealthy conditions.

Crab peeling is a form of employment with which woman and children can earn money but it is inconsistent, it depends on crab resources. Khmer men prefer not to do this work; as traditionally they consider this work only fit for women and children.


Work in the crab and shrimp industry consists of:

- Peeling the fresh product in frozen factories; or,
- Peeling the boiled product [at home or in a factory] ; or,
- Peeling the boiled product and then processing into a number of dried products

A healthy woman, or teenage child, working a full 8 or 9 hour day can peel 10Kg of crab, producing 3Kg of meat and earning up to 5,000 riel for a days work; that is to say, US$1.25.

It is mostly the smaller or medium sized crabs that are used for processing. Larger crabs are usually exported whole to Thailand – or occasionally snapped up at the fishers landing port by rich locals – or we jolly ex-pats after a bargain.

However, over the past few years there have been some noticeable changes within the crab and shrimp catches, so noticeable, that even we ex-pat gourmands have noticed.

Although there is some guidance relating to the fishing and processing of crab and shrimp - for the purpose of managing fisheries resources in sustainable manner - because of the high market demand, and the fact that fisheries are poorly managed, smaller crabs and shrimp are being caught every day.

The fisheries department and the coastal provincial fisheries offices have issued prohibitions about small or juvenile crab catching, transporting, and selling, as well as also other aquatic animals, but they are not followed.

In reality this relates to the market demand. If crab collectors buy/collect only large, adult, crabs or their meat then the smaller crabs should not be caught.

However, nowadays small crabs [as in thumb-sized or 140+ crabs/Kg] are caught and peeled to produce processed Crabmeat for sale.

The fisheries department and provincial fisheries offices still do not have disciplinary measures to control Crabmeat crab production and retail.

Nowadays, at least 5 species of crab (local names: K'dam Nhe, K'dam Prolet, K'dam Kantray, K'dam Pkor Lorn and K'dam Ses) are collected and peeled to produce crabmeat for export and sale to Thailand by local collectors.

In the case where we have companies investing in the marine fisheries sector; such as fish processing, they have an obligation to accurately control the quality of products, thus helping to reduce the catching of immature crabs and shrimp, additionally, this can help the local economy by providing extra employment through these companies.

Clearly, the frozen factories in Sihanoukville and Kep have accurate control over the quality and quantity of their products and do not buy smaller crabs or shrimp, these companies also provide valuable employment in the area.

Some of the larger existing companies’ collect crabmeat in Cambodia and then transport the catch to Thailand for processing/stuffing/packaging before exporting it to the European market, where it is labelled ‘Product of Thailand’

If Cambodian companies collected and packaged Crabmeat in Cambodia and where then able to export it to Europe et cetera, then this would not only increase Cambodian export revenues, but would also create additional employment along the coastal areas.

Crabmeat (Flower crab) from Cambodia is of the highest quality, is tasty and aromatic, if it is packaged in Cambodia and labelled as a Cambodian product then this will create more interest among foreign consumers and has the potential to gain additional benefits for Cambodia.

Unfortunately, the many agencies pouring money into this Country are not interested in, or concerned with, or mandated to, helping the Country develop a stable trade base or increasing local trade and industry, which are the only true ways of helping this Country become self-sustaining in future years.