How Bangladesh’s grassroots entrepreneurs are reinventing the fish business

For years, fish farmer Mobarak Hossain Sumon spent his days the traditional way — cultivating fish in ponds spread across 1.5 acres of land in Natore and selling them wholesale in Dhaka and other parts of the country.

But the business barely brought satisfactory returns.

"The profit margin was always limited," Sumon recalled. "I used to think about doing something different."

Today, that "different" idea has transformed his business model entirely.

Instead of selling raw fish through conventional markets, Sumon now processes fresh fish into ready-to-cook products — cleaned, cut and packaged for consumers seeking convenience amid increasingly busy urban lifestyles.

Through his online platform 'Sumon Fish Shop', customers from different parts of the country now order processed fish products both online and offline.

The shift has significantly increased his income.

"People's lifestyles have changed. Demand for ready-to-cook fish is growing rapidly," said Sumon, who entered fish farming after studying up to class nine.

He now sells at least Tk1 lakh worth of fish every month. His business has also created jobs for three other people.

Yet despite the growing market, he worries about the absence of a clear government policy framework for the sector.

Processed fish is giving way to a growing market for value-added products. 

A growing appetite for convenience

Ready-to-cook fish refers to fish that is cleaned, washed, cut and packaged before reaching consumers. The growing popularity of such products is creating a new generation of entrepreneurs across Bangladesh.

Behind much of this transformation is the Rural Microenterprise Transformation Project (RMTP), financed by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), PKSF and Denmark's development agency Danida.

Operating in 25 districts through 24 partner organisations, the project is working to develop more than 150,000 entrepreneurs in the fisheries sector while strengthening value chains for safe fish and processed fish products.

Over the last six years, RMTP has focused on developing small enterprises in agriculture, fisheries and crop production while improving financial inclusion for marginal entrepreneurs and farmers.

The project has also introduced initiatives ranging from certification systems and farm mechanisation to the use of Internet of Things technology in agriculture.

In the fisheries sector, RMTP has promoted hatchery modernisation, safe fingerling supply and intensive fish farming methods. But perhaps its most visible success has been popularising ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat fish products among urban consumers.

"Building sustainable businesses through safe food production, processing, marketing and digital connectivity is our goal," said Md Alauddin Khan, executive director of Sirajganj's National Development Programme (NDP), one of RMTP's partner organisations.

From kitchen knives to digital business

In Khulna's Rupsa upazila, entrepreneur Mishkat Sharif once relied entirely on manual labour to process fish.

Fish were cut using ordinary kitchen knives. Packaging and preservation systems were rudimentary. Weekly sales rarely exceeded 10kg, managed by only one worker.

Things began changing after he received modern fish-cutting equipment and vacuum sealing technology.

The machinery enabled faster and more hygienic processing, while vacuum packaging helped preserve freshness and improve product quality.

At the same time, his business expanded digitally through a website, Facebook page and mobile app.

The impact was immediate.

His weekly sales have now risen to between 40kg and 50kg. Employment at his business has quadrupled, with four people currently working there.

For the past five years, Mishkat has been selling processed fish this way and now records monthly sales of around Tk2 lakh.

Local women clean and prepare the fish before the products are packaged and delivered to customers.

"Earlier, everything was done in a completely traditional way," Mishkat said. "Now online platforms have opened up a much bigger market for us."

Fish kebabs are among the 18-20 value-added fish products now reaching customers through both traditional and digital marketplaces  

Women finding new opportunities

The rise of processed fish products is also creating employment opportunities for women.

In Natore, entrepreneur Nasima Parvin works with at least 10 women every day who clean and prepare fish for urban consumers increasingly seeking boneless and ready-to-cook products.

"These women now have an income source of their own," Nasima said. "I like being able to help improve their livelihoods."

She added that demand for processed and boneless fish has expanded beyond cities and is gradually gaining popularity in rural areas as well.

A family business goes digital

For Umme Wara Khatun from Alamdanga in Chuadanga, the idea emerged from her father's traditional fish wholesale business.

She began asking herself why fish had to remain confined to local wholesale markets when busy consumers were looking for easier and cleaner options.

That thought led her to create a digital ready-to-cook fish business under the brand "Machwali Talha".

Starting with only a smartphone and limited capital, she selected fish from her father's wholesale market, supervised the cleaning and packaging herself and posted product photos on Facebook groups and pages.

Today, after overcoming numerous challenges, Umme Wara has built a successful online business employing 12 people involved in fish processing and delivery operations.

Her monthly sales now exceed Tk7 lakh.

Beyond raw fish

Entrepreneurs are now moving beyond simply selling processed fish and are producing a range of value-added products that are becoming increasingly popular in restaurants and among consumers.

These include fish burgers, fish sticks, fish balls, fish barbecue, fish cutlets and fish singaras.

According to PKSF, the project has provided technical, financial and product development support to entrepreneurs from the very beginning, alongside training on certification systems, e-commerce and f-commerce.

So far, the initiative has directly developed 278 small entrepreneurs involved in ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat fish products.

Together, they now produce and market around 35 tonnes of processed fish products every month.

PKSF says entrepreneurs' monthly incomes have increased by 78% due to value-added production.

Processed fish is giving way to a growing market for value-added products. 

From roadside stall to restaurant owner

One such entrepreneur is Nasima Akhter Rita, from Ukilpara in Naogaon town.

She once sold bread, paratha, vegetables, eggs and potato singaras on a small table at the roadside. Earnings were barely enough to support her family and finance her sons' education.

Her turning point came when she received training on safe fish and fish products initiative focused on ready-to-eat food production by PKSF. She also received a Tk50,000 grant, which helped her launch a business in town.

In addition, she received support in improving workplace conditions at her production facility, product branding, certification, Facebook boosting and YouTube promotion.

Today, Rita produces between 18 and 20 fish-based food items, including fish rolls, fish singaras, fish chanachur, fish pickles, fish puli pitha and fish kebabs.

She now sells the products both offline and through e-commerce and f-commerce platforms.

Rita said she earns around Tk70,000 per month from fish-based products alone. Her restaurant currently employs seven workers.

As part of her social commitment, she has also employed an underprivileged boy and is supporting his education.

The sector's growth is being held back by the absence of clear regulations governing fish processing, the expansion of street-food businesses, and the safety and marketing of ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat fish products, according to Prof Dr A K M Nowshad Alam of the Department of Fisheries Technology at Bangladesh Agricultural University.

He noted that although large volumes of prepared food are sold through roadside shops, pavements and small restaurants across the country, there is no specific regulatory framework to ensure quality standards.

"There should be dedicated standards developed by the Department of Fisheries to improve and monitor the quality of these products," he said.

Discussing both the opportunities and challenges facing the sector, PKSF Managing Director Md Fazlul Kader said greater value addition was essential to improving the incomes of farmers and entrepreneurs.

"We want to see more value added to products. That will benefit both farmers and entrepreneurs," he said.

He added that the ready-to-cook and ready-to-eat fish industry would require significant technical support, along with an appropriate policy framework, to realise its full potential.

"We will also need to find ways to address these challenges in the coming years," he said.

When struggles for survival become a story of transformation, it reflects how Bangladesh's fisheries sector is quietly reinventing itself through innovation, digital commerce and changing consumer habits.

When struggles for survival become a story of transformation, it reflects how Bangladesh's fisheries sector is quietly reinventing itself through innovation, digital commerce and changing consumer habits.