Fishermen in Nghe An boil squid right at sea to maintain prices.
(Baonghean.vn) - After a long break, some boats from Hoang Mai town (Nghe An province) have set sail again. Upon returning, the fishermen were delighted to have caught large hauls of squid. Previously, they had boiled the squid right at sea to ensure quality and maintain a good selling price upon arrival at shore.
After more than 10 days at sea, the NA 94355 vessel owned by Mr. Tran Ngoc Kien from Tan Hai village, Quynh Lap commune, is docking to sell squid to traders. On this trip, his vessel fished in the waters off Quang Binh province. He said that the peak season is beginning, so schools of squid are surfacing in high densities in the offshore area where his vessel was operating.
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| The people of Quynh Lap were waiting to buy the squid. Photo: Thanh Thuy |
The catch was relatively large, so the crew divided the tasks: some pulled the nets, others washed the squid and boiled them right at sea to ensure freshness and allow the ship to sail for longer periods. After boiling, the squid were drained and placed in the refrigerated hold. Subsequent catches were kept to be sold fresh.
On this trip, Kien's boat harvested 3 tons of boiled squid and 1 ton of fresh squid, with a total value of over 320 million VND. However, the price of squid has decreased compared to before, so after deducting expenses, the crew members are left with about 120 million VND.
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| The squid is boiled right at sea to ensure its freshness. Photo: Thanh Thủy |
According to Mr. Le Ba Ky, Chairman of the Farmers' Association of Quynh Lap commune: Currently, Quynh Lap commune has 146 fishing vessels, including dozens of boats for offshore squid fishing. From the beginning of 2020 until now, the squid catch of fishermen in Quynh Lap commune is estimated at over 100 tons.
Currently, the price of boiled squid sold at the port ranges from 80,000 to 120,000 VND/kg depending on the size of the squid. Fresh squid, on the other hand, costs from 100,000 VND/kg upwards. According to local purchasing centers, although the prices of fresh, boiled, and dried squid have decreased compared to before Tet (Lunar New Year), after deducting expenses, boat owners are still making a profit. Crew members earn around 8 million VND per 10-15 day trip. Thanks to this, fishermen remain confident in their work at sea, returning to shore after a 3-5 day break before heading out to sea again.
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| At this time of year, fishermen in Hoang Mai town are having a bumper squid catch, with each boat harvesting 2-4 tons per trip. |
