Nghe An fishermen have a good season of spotted fish

On March 17, dozens of fishing boats of fishermen from Quynh Nghia and Tien Thuy communes returned to Lach Quen port after a long fishing trip at sea. Trays of fresh spotted fish and squid were urgently lowered onto the rails to be weighed and sold to traders.

The joy of fishermen in Quynh Luu (Nghe An) after a successful fishing trip. Photo: Viet Hung

Captain Ho Van Manh in Quynh Nghia commune said: Lach Quen fishing port has just become bustling again after a long period of ineffective fishing. In the first months of the year, my boat continuously went out to sea, making up to 6 trips; each trip brought in an income of 200 - 300 million VND. This trip alone brought in more than 250 million VND, mainly from spotted fish and mackerel.

To be there in time to purchase seafood when the boats return, hundreds of traders wait at Lach Quen wharf. After purchasing, tons of seafood are immediately loaded onto trucks to be transported to the provinces for consumption.

At this time, seafood resources are very abundant; in which, spotted fish, mackerel, fresh squid are abundant... Currently, spotted fish costs 30,000 VND/kg; mackerel costs 60,000 VND/kg. Photo: Viet Hung

Excited about the good fishing season, fisherman Nguyen Van Tinh in Tien Thuy commune said that although this is not the main fishing season, the catch is much higher than last year. This trip, Tinh's boat caught nearly 10 tons of both large and small spotted fish; after deducting expenses, each crew member earned 5 - 6 million VND.

According to fishermen, since after Tet until now, every trip to the port, every boat has caught a lot of seafood, the most of which are anchovies, spotted fish, mackerel, and fresh squid. Currently, large spotted fish cost 30,000 VND/kg; small fish cost 6,000 VND/kg; fresh squid costs from 80,000 - 200,000 VND/kg.

In addition to purchasing for retail or import to distributors in many provinces, many purchasing and processing facilities in the district also purchase for preliminary processing and preservation to enhance value and quality.

By the end of March, the total output of Quynh Luu district reached nearly 9,000 tons of seafood, more than 1,000 tons compared to the same period last year. Photo: Viet Hung

Ms. Ho Thi Hoa in Tien Thuy commune said: "We have 3 frozen warehouses with a capacity of about 10 tons of fish. After Tet until now, we have purchased and sold nearly 80 tons of pre-processed fish such as mackerel, spotted fish... Overall, the purchase of seafood at the beginning of the year was very favorable, the source of goods was abundant, creating more jobs for people."

According to preliminary statistics, in the first 3 months of 2019, the entire Quynh Luu district exploited nearly 9,000 tons of seafood with a total revenue value of more than 350 billion VND.