Quynh Luu fishermen earn millions every day thanks to a big catch of herring.

At nearly 7am, fishermen from Quynh Nghia commune gathered in large numbers at the beach to harvest herring. Nets were spread out so that people could easily remove the fish. Quickly removing the fish, fisherman Ho Xuan Sang said that this season is mainly herring, so fishermen all take advantage of going to sea to catch fish. If you go to sea at around 3am, you can harvest herring by 6am the same day.

“After 3 hours of fishing for herring, this morning my boat caught 200kg of herring, after deducting expenses, I earned about 3.5 million VND. Since Tet until now, I have made 10 such trips, and my income has reached over 30 million VND,” fisherman Ho Xuan Sang said happily.

Sharing the joy, Nguyen Van Tu's boat in Quynh Nghia commune caught a big catch of 1.8 quintals of herring after only 3 hours of fishing at sea. Tu said that herring is caught by fishermen from the beginning of the first lunar month to the end of March. Depending on the region, people use large-capacity boats to catch herring in the open sea, but for fishermen in Quynh Nghia commune, they mainly fish in the near-shore area, 5-6 nautical miles from the mainland. Each herring fishing boat has only one person and 4-5 net bags as fishing gear. Wherever they go, fishermen drop their nets until they run out of nets and then return to pull the nets back onto the boat.

Herring fishing depends on the fish flow, if lucky, you can catch 4-5 quintals, otherwise, on average, 1.5-2.5 quintals. After returning to shore, each boat owner will mobilize relatives or hire workers to remove the fish. Because fishing only takes a few hours, the herrings are always fresh and green when removed. As the fish are removed, traders come to buy all of them at a price of 15,000-25,000 VND/kg (depending on the type), then take them to the markets to sell. Every day I go fishing for herrings for about 2-3 hours and can earn millions. When the season ends, we change jobs to ensure we have a source of income.

Fisherman Nguyen Van Tu

Quynh Nghia commune has about 50 boats specializing in exploiting coastal seafood, mainly catching herring, mantis shrimp, crabs, anchovies... After Tet until now, fishermen here mainly fish for herring with an output of over 150 tons, revenue of over 3 billion VND.

Mr. To Duy Hien - Chairman of the People's Committee of Quynh Nghia Commune (Quynh Luu) said: "Taking advantage, in the first days of the new year, local fishermen actively stick to the sea to catch seafood. The whole commune currently has over 94 offshore fishing vessels, in addition, there are dozens of vessels specializing in coastal fishing. For nearshore fishing boats, at this time, people mainly exploit herring. With such high estimated output and value, it has helped local people have a stable source of income. This is also the motivation for them to continue going offshore, believing and hoping for a successful year of fishing."

Not only fishermen in Quynh Nghia commune but also people in some coastal communes of Quynh Luu district such as Quynh Long, Quynh Luong, Quynh Minh, Quynh Bang... are also actively fishing for herring at sea. Every day, fishermen in this district exploit about 30 - 35 tons of herring. With the herring caught during the day, in addition to bringing it to the markets to sell fresh, people in coastal areas also dry it in the sun or grill it on hot coals to preserve it for a long time.

Herring is a marine fish, the English name is Sardinella, quite small in size, an adult weighs only about 100g and is about 15cm long. The fish has slightly green skin and scales and a long body, it also has quite small bones. In particular, under the belly there are very sharp and pointed serrated teeth. Herring has many benefits for human health, using herring helps increase red blood cell production; reduce inflammation and some diseases; reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke; help bones healthy; nourish the nervous system.