Farmers in Lao Ven hamlet, Lieu Tu commune, are facing difficulties due to a lack of market for their snakehead fish.
At Mr. Truong Thanh Hoang's approximately 15-hectare snakehead fish farm in Lao Ven hamlet, 30 ponds containing nearly 300 tons of overgrown fish are still waiting to be sold. The unsold fish are still being fed sparingly, with about 7 tons of feed consumed daily. It is estimated that Mr. Hoang spends about 150 million VND per day on fish feed. Mr. Hoang sadly showed us the fish floating belly-up on the surface of the pond: “In previous farming seasons, the fish were ready for sale when they were 6 or 7 months old. But this season, the fish are over 9 months old and still waiting for buyers. Over a hundred kilograms of fish die every day. I use the dead fish as feed for catfish and pangasius, but the number of dead fish is so high that the catfish can't eat them all.”
In Lao Ven, Mr. Hoang's household has the largest area for raising snakehead fish in the region. Having been involved with snakehead fish farming for nearly 10 years, Mr. Hoang both raises fish for commercial purposes and buys fish from neighboring farmers. However, currently, due to a large surplus of fish, he has stopped buying from other farmers. Mr. Hoang is now transporting the fish himself to Binh Dien Market ( Ho Chi Minh City) to sell to retailers, hoping to recoup some of his capital.
“Last year, the purchase price at the pond was around 62,000-65,000 VND/kg. This year, from February, the price dropped to 55,000 VND and is currently only around 49,000 VND/kg, and we have to deliver to the customer's location. With the current selling price, after calculating all costs, this year's fish harvest risks incurring losses,” Mr. Hoang further shared.
To deal with over 40 tons of unsold, overgrown snakehead fish, Mr. Phan Huu Tho, a resident of Lao Ven, agreed to sell them at 45,000 VND/kg. However, after nearly a month of advertising, no buyers have come. “The fish haven’t sold, and I still have to spend over 30 million VND daily on feed for my six ponds. Now I just hope someone will come and buy the fish; I’ll sell them even at a loss,” Mr. Tho affirmed. In a similar situation, Mrs. Tran Thi Phuong is also hoping traders will come and offer a price for her nearly 40 tons of snakehead fish ready for sale, currently sitting in her ponds.
Lao Ven hamlet currently has 15 households raising snakehead fish, with the main buyers being Nam Dinh province, Hanoi city, and Binh Dien market (Ho Chi Minh City). This year, these buyers did not purchase the fish, leading to a surplus. According to the farmers, the harvest coincided with a sharp increase in gasoline and diesel prices, and the high transportation costs deterred buyers. Furthermore, while previously the farmers in Lao Ven bought fish fry from other places, this year they are raising their own fry, resulting in a more than 1.5-fold increase in the amount of fish stocked compared to the previous season, while the market demand remains limited. This is also a reason why snakehead fish farmers are facing difficulties.
According to Mr. Phan Huu Ngan, Head of the People's Committee of Lao Ven hamlet, the farming of snakehead fish in the area has existed since 2016. Initially, only a few households raised them, but later, due to market demand, more households in the area began to focus on raising this type of fish. In the region, the household with the largest farming area has 15 hectares, while the remaining households have between 0.9 and 3 hectares.
“For the past few years, the snakehead fish has brought stable livelihoods to the people, with some households even becoming well-off. This year, the fish farmers have been successful, achieving high yields, but they are facing difficulties in the consumer market, and many households are likely to suffer losses. According to statistics from the farmers, there are currently about 600 tons of fish that have not yet found a market,” Mr. Ngan said.
Faced with the difficulties of snakehead fish farmers in Lao Ven, the Party Committee and People's Committee of Lieu Tu commune directly visited the farming areas to assess the situation and proactively implemented various solutions to alleviate the difficulties in finding markets for the farmers. The proposed solutions included strengthening market connections through purchasing businesses and major distributors in Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and northern provinces; and seeking new distribution channels such as supermarkets, wholesale markets, and e-commerce platforms.
According to Mr. Nguyen Thanh Duy, Secretary of the Party Committee of Lieu Tu commune, it is necessary to guide people to participate in cooperatives and associations to enhance linkages, create large quantities of goods with consistent quality to meet market demands. The People's Committee of the commune needs to coordinate with specialized departments to support the building of brands and traceability of Lao Ven snakehead fish products, aiming for sustainable consumption and market expansion. People should also explore diversifying consumption methods such as processing fish, freezing fish, selling through digital platforms, livestreaming sales, and reducing dependence on traditional traders.
"The difficulties in finding markets for snakehead fish in Lao Ven are not just a problem for individual households, but also a common challenge in organizing production and developing markets in agriculture . In the long term, building a supply chain from production to consumption will be the inevitable direction, helping the snakehead fish farming industry develop stably and bring sustainable income to the people," Mr. Nguyen Thanh Duy added.
Text and photos: XUAN NGUYEN
Source: https://baocantho.com.vn/kho-khan-tim-dau-ra-cho-ca-chach-que-a203060.html
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