(Baonghean.vn)- Every time the water level in Mai Giang River is low, people in Quynh Luu district go to the river to collect oysters. This job is a bit hard but brings in high income.
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| Taking advantage of the Mai Giang River flowing through the two communes of An Hoa and Quynh Nghia, the people here rely on it to raise oysters. At this time, oysters have just been released for farming, so the people in Tan An village (An Hoa) invite each other to collect natural oysters. |
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| Quynh Luu has about 50 households farming oysters, concentrated in Tan An village (An Hoa). Oysters are raised by people on the Mai Giang river, the farming time is about 10-12 months, usually harvested during Tet. Currently, while waiting for the oysters to grow, oyster farmers and some other households take advantage of the time to go to the river to pick oysters to earn extra income. |
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| To find oysters, people have to wade into the river, using their hands and feet to feel the water until they find them; or walk along the riverbanks and use sharp iron hammers to dig up oysters. |
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| While searching for oysters on the riverbank, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Huong said, “Today the water level has receded so we wade into the river to pick up oysters. If we pick up oysters until the afternoon, we will have about 6-7 kg of oysters, earning about 400,000-500,000 VND/day.” |
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| Oysters are collected by people and brought to shore. Currently, 1 kg of cleaned oysters costs 70-80 thousand VND/kg; during Tet, the price of oysters increases to 100-150 thousand VND/kg. According to people, oyster collection depends on the ebb and flow of the water. They collect 3-5 kg of oysters every 2-3 days, earning 300-500 thousand VND/person/day, twice as much as making salt. |
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| Ms. Nguyen Thi Ha, Tan An village, said that her family raises 2 oyster rafts, each raft has 2,000 oyster strings, each string has 6-7 oyster shells. On average, each year, the 2 rafts produce about 1.2 tons of oysters, earning nearly 20 million/year. In addition, during the time waiting for the oysters to grow, she collects 3kg of oysters every day, to have money to cover her living expenses. |
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| Rafts are made of bamboo and foam to raise oysters on the river. |
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| Oysters are cleaned from their shells by people. |
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| Oysters stir-fried with banana stem is very attractive. |
Viet Hung
