Carp fish used to bid farewell to the Kitchen God: Prices plummet, markets deserted.

TPO - This year, vendors have prepared large quantities of carp figurines depicting "two men and one woman" to bid farewell to the Kitchen God, ensuring stable prices. In addition, other offerings and fruits for the Kitchen God festival are abundant, with prices slightly higher than usual.

Báo Tiền Phong•09/02/2026

On February 9th (the 22nd day of the 12th lunar month) - one day before the Kitchen God's departure to heaven - a pet shop on Nguyen Thong Street (Xuan Hoa Ward, Ho Chi Minh City) displayed a whimsical sign that read "Kitchen God and Kitchen Goddess - Two men and one woman, come and choose" to attract customers to buy carp to send the Kitchen God off to heaven.

Inside, shop staff had prepared hundreds of healthy, lively carp for customers to choose from. Staff would assist in catching two male and one female carp ("two men and one woman") for customers. After purchase, the fish were placed in plastic bags with oxygenated water to keep them healthy before being released into rivers or lakes.

This year, the carp used for sending the Kitchen God to heaven are all very large and healthy. Three carp cost 200,000 VND. According to the shop owner, the price of carp for sending the Kitchen God to heaven has not fluctuated, however, there are quite few customers. They hope that this evening or on the 23rd day of the 12th lunar month (February 10th), more customers will come to buy carp.

This year, GO! supermarkets are offering an attractive service: selling golden carp to send the Kitchen God off to heaven. The supermarket has placed a tank of carp in a central location, with nets provided for customers to catch as many fish as they like. "Typically, customers choose to buy three golden carp on this day," a supermarket employee said.

Golden carp are categorized by size to make it easier for customers to choose.

Priced from 8,800 to 14,900 VND per fish, golden carp are a very popular choice among customers during this period.

The area selling offerings for the Kitchen God and Stove God festival at Ba Chieu market is bustling with customers. "Each complete offering set, including paper money, candies, and cakes, costs around 50,000 VND. The prices are the same as usual, but customers are buying less, just enough to set up the offering tray, not as lavishly as before. People are also limiting the burning of paper money now," said a vendor.