Bangladesh has finally started to farm vannamei shrimp on pilot basis following pleas from exporters as locally grown black tiger shrimp and freshwater prawn are unable to compete with cheaper varieties in western markets. Purchased from Thailand, the first 10-lakh batch of vannamei was released in four ponds of Bangladesh Fisheries Research Institute (BFRI) in Paikgachha upazila of Khulna. For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.