People in Nghe An province are selling shrimp cheaply and moving fish to escape Typhoon No. 4.

Selling shrimp to escape the storm.

Mr. Dau Ngoc My, residing in Hamlet 4, Dien Trung Commune (Dien Chau District), owns two shrimp ponds covering an area of ​​4,500 m2. He has been raising shrimp for four months, with the shrimp reaching an average weight of 60 shrimp per kilogram. Although not yet ready for harvest, due to Typhoon No. 4 hitting Nghe An, Mr. My had to sell his shrimp quickly, accepting a low price of 120,000 VND per kilogram.

Harvesting shrimp to escape the storm at Mr. Dau Ngoc My's shrimp farm, Hamlet 4, Dien Trung Commune (Dien Chau District). Photo: Xuan Hoang

From the afternoon of August 28th to the morning of August 29th, Mr. My sold 1 ton of shrimp. He is currently waiting for traders to arrive to continue harvesting. Mr. My shared: "If there hadn't been a storm, I would have raised them for another 20 days before selling them. At that time, the shrimp would have reached 45 shrimp per kilogram, and I wouldn't have been forced to sell them at a low price."

Besides selling shrimp, people in Dien Trung are also focusing on protecting the shrimp ponds that have just been stocked with shrimp fry in the area outside the dike. Mr. Nguyen Van Dong, from Hamlet 6, Dien Trung commune, has a 2,000 m2 shrimp pond outside the dike, which he stocked with shrimp fry 20 days ago. Mr. Dong said he has prepared more than 100 meters of netting to surround the pond, to prevent the pond from being flooded by rising sea levels. Currently, Mr. Dong is mobilizing manpower to gather machinery and repair generators, in case of power outages, to run the aeration machines in the pond.

Despite the shrimp weighing 60 pieces per kilogram, the selling price is only 130,000 VND per kilogram. Photo: Quang An

Mr. Dau Ngoc Hoa, Director of Dien Trung Livestock Cooperative, said: "In Dien Trung commune, 16 shrimp ponds located outside the dike had to be sold off quickly due to Typhoon No. 4. Farmers accepted low prices to harvest their shrimp, aiming to avoid losses when the typhoon hit. At a selling price of 130,000 VND/kg, shrimp farmers suffered losses. Normally, the price of shrimp at this time should be above 160,000 VND/kg."

Mr. Le The Hieu, Head of the Agriculture and Rural Development Department of Dien Chau district, said: Regarding aquaculture, Dien Chau district has directed key shrimp farming localities such as Dien Trung and Dien Thinh to promote and encourage people to use nets to cover 10 hectares of newly stocked shrimp ponds outside the dike. For shrimp ponds that can be harvested, people are encouraged to harvest before the storm hits.

However, the amount of shrimp sold depends on orders from traders. Photo: Quang An

In Hung Hoa commune, a key shrimp farming area in Vinh City, farmers are also accelerating the harvesting process before the storm arrives. The entire commune has 110 hectares of second-crop shrimp ready for harvest, with about 50% already harvested. Despite high demand, shrimp prices in Hung Hoa remain slightly higher than in other localities, currently ranging from 140,000 to 150,000 VND/kg.

Mr. Duong Xuan Tham, an agricultural official in Hung Hoa commune, said: "The stable price of shrimp is due to the fact that Hung Hoa's shrimp market is mainly consumed in Vinh City, always selling out within the day, unlike other localities where shrimp are sold inter-provincially. We are currently urging farmers to quickly harvest the remaining area to avoid losses."

Do Luong moves fish to a safe area.

To avoid damage caused by typhoon number 4, on the morning of August 29th, freshwater fish farmers in Do Luong district deployed nets, reinforced embankments, and moved their fish to safe ponds and lakes.

Currently, the entire Do Luong district has 1,400 hectares of water surface for fish farming. Of this, 647.5 hectares are used for farming in reservoirs and irrigation lakes; 538.8 hectares are used for farming in ponds and lakes, and the remaining area is used for fish farming in rice fields during the first, second, and third cropping seasons.

In areas where fish are raised in rice paddies, farmers have deployed nets to transport fish fry to areas protected from flooding. For the fish fry, those with a large weight are sold at 50,000 VND/kg. Fish weighing 0.5 kg or less are collected and moved to a safe location to be used as fry for the third crop.