Need to strictly manage seed sources and food in marine farming

At the recent workshop on developing breeds and feed for marine aquaculture organized by the Department of Fisheries in coordination with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, many opinions said that it is necessary to strictly manage the production of breeds and feed for marine aquaculture in order to sustainably develop marine aquaculture.

Not fully proactive about breeds and food

Khanh Hoa is one of the leading localities in developing marine aquaculture in the country. The province currently has nearly 65,000 lobster cages, with an average annual output of more than 1,300 tons. In addition, marine fish such as: sea bass, grouper, cobia, yellowfin pomfret... are also raised in large numbers in bays and lagoons with nearly 9,800 cages, with a total annual output of about 8,000 tons. In addition, farmed species such as: sea crabs, Pacific oysters, geoducks, seaweed are contributing to helping coastal people improve their income.

High-tech, industrial-scale marine farming at Australis Vietnam Seafood Company Limited

High-tech, industrial-scale marine farming at Autralis Vietnam Seafood Company Limited.

According to Mr. Le Van Hoan - Deputy Director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the province's marine aquaculture industry is facing many difficulties as people mainly raise fish using traditional cages, mostly using fresh food; they are not proactive in providing breeds for some key farming species, especially lobsters. In addition, the production and supply of industrial feed for each farming species and each stage of development is still limited... leading to many risks of environmental pollution, diseases, and instability in investment and development of the marine aquaculture industry.

Regarding seed production, Khanh Hoa is one of the localities with a large number of aquatic seed production and breeding facilities in the Central region. In the first 6 months of this year, 221 seed production facilities in the province produced and supplied more than 2.1 billion seeds of all kinds to farming areas inside and outside the province. The aquatic seed produced is quite diverse, including: giant tiger prawn, white-leg shrimp, snails, sea fish, geoducks, crabs, sea cucumbers, etc. However, up to now, the facilities have not been fully proactive in artificially produced seeds, such as lobsters, some species of marine fish, seaweed. The produced seeds have not yet met the demand for commercial farming. The infrastructure serving aquatic seed production has not been invested in proportionately, mainly on a small scale; only 141 facilities have been granted certificates of eligibility for aquatic seed production and breeding, etc.

Regarding the use of food in marine farming, people mainly use fresh food including trash fish, small crustaceans and mollusks such as clams and mussels; only a few businesses and facilities investing in marine fish farming in the form of HDPE plastic cages use industrial food. “The use of fresh food not only affects coastal aquatic resources but also leaves great consequences for the farming environment. Therefore, there needs to be a solution to overcome this and proactively source industrial food for marine farming. There needs to be research so that industrial food can replace fresh food, suitable for each stage of development of each farming object”, Mr. Vo Khac En - Deputy Director of the Department of Fisheries shared.

Strictly manage seed and food sources

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Huu Dung - Chairman of the Vietnam Marine Aquaculture Association, breeds and feed account for more than 80% of the cost of commercial marine aquaculture. These are two important factors for the development of marine aquaculture. Therefore, it is necessary to strictly manage breeds and feed for marine aquaculture to develop the aquaculture industry sustainably.

Many experts believe that in order to produce quality breeds, the management and selection of parent breeds must be given top priority. Therefore, state management agencies need to strengthen close supervision of parent breeds; there must be specific regulations and strict management of conditions of breeding facilities. In addition, the province needs to focus on selecting key breeds for systematic production, while organizing implementation along the chain to increase the value of the industry and develop sustainable marine aquaculture.

In the orientation of developing feed production for marine aquaculture, the province directs units to research the process of producing industrial feed for some key aquaculture species with high economic value; calls for and attracts investment to develop industrial feed production in marine aquaculture; encourages marine aquaculture facilities to use 100% industrial feed, limit and gradually eliminate the use of fresh feed in marine aquaculture...

Mr. Tran Dinh Luan - Director of the Department of Fisheries said that in the coming time, localities need to review and strictly manage facilities producing seeds and feed for marine aquaculture. The demand for seeds and feed for marine aquaculture is very large, so there needs to be a connection between farmers and suppliers. This will help avoid dumping and maintain market stability. The Department of Fisheries will review the raising of parent stocks, raising seeds, and establishing supply chains to provide quality seeds and feed for marine aquaculture; at the same time, strengthen supervision of seed quality and feed for aquatic products.

HAI LANG

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