Seasonal change, summer heat, and heavy rains were one of the causes for the death of freshwater fish in cages in Hiệp Hòa (of Biên Hòa city, Đồng Nai province).
Farmers related to fish cage culture in Hiệp Hòa ward of Biên Hòa city, Đồng Nai province have faced difficulties due to poor consumption despite low selling prices. The village of fish cage farming in Hiệp Hòa reported more than 1,000 tons of fish unharvested, resulting in a high risk of massive death of fish.
Before the seasonal change, farmers related to fish cage culture harvested to reduce the risk of fish death. However, farmers have seen oversized fish not to be harvested and sold since Tet Holiday 2023. Poor consumption was to blame even though the selling price was lower than the production cost.
Nguyễn Hồng Văn, a farmer in Hiệp Hòa ward who has about 30 tons of oversized grass carps and carps said worriedly: “When the market is good, I call and traders come at once, but now I have to wait, even for a month. Traders buy just a few fish, not the whole pond as before. We seem to be on a stew because the longer we keep the fish in ponds the more loss we have to suffer, we even may be empty handed due to massive death of fish at this moment”.
Nguyễn Hồng Vy, a trader and farmer related to fish cage culture in Hiệp Hòa ward said that his family had 30 cages, about 5-7 tons of fish being harvested each.
And yet, about 50 tons of grass carp and carp are unharvested but he had to wait for his turn because traders are buying fish from households that have been selling him fish. Before the Covid-19 pandemic, he purchased 4-5 tons of fish per day on average; however after the pandemic it was one ton due to poor consumption.
According to the Đồng Nai provincial Sub-department of Fisheries, as many as over 1,000 tons of fish in Hiệp Hòa have reached the harvest size, with a large number of them in big size.
According to farmers, fish in rafts haven’t eaten for the last month and some died. A few days back, some rafts reported massive death of fish. Up to tens of tons of fish were found dead per day, mainly big size fish and in nearshore rafts.
According to Đồng Nai provincial Sub-department of Fisheries, fish have been found dead since May 10, mainly big size grass carp and carp, 5-7 kg each on average, in nearshore cages. As many as 40-50 tons of fish were found dead within the last 20 days, equal to 4%.
Scattered death in a day was reported but massive death in a single raft.
VFM
