Clam seeds are scarce and prices are high, making it difficult for farmers to make ends meet.

The ideal clam breed (about 500 pieces/kg) is very scarce and has a high price in Ha Tinh .

More than 2 months ago, Ms. Pham Thi Hong in Mai Lam village (Mai Phu commune) contacted a clam seed supplier in Ninh Binh province to buy nearly 10 tons of seeds. Although she proactively sought seeds to maintain the production rhythm, due to unavoidable reasons, the partner had to ask for "delays" many times. To make it in time for the season, Ms. Hong also contacted many other facilities but all of them were in vain.

Thanks to her acquaintance, 2 days ago, Ms. Hong bought more than 9 tons of seeds to reproduce 1 hectare (already harvested) out of a total of 6 hectares. However, it is still not enough for production, only 8 tons of 500 seeds/kg (suitable for farming conditions) were bought, and more than 1 ton had to accept the 1,000 seeds/kg which was not as desired (because they are small and easily washed away, have to be raised for a long time, and cannot be harvested simultaneously...).

Clam farmers in Mai Lam village (Mai Phu commune) load clam seeds from their trucks into boats to take to the alluvial plains along the river to raise.

Ms. Pham Thi Huong (Mai Lam village) is one of the two households that found the earliest breeding stock in the Cua Sot farming area. Ms. Huong excitedly said: “After nearly 2 months of waiting, I bought 5 tons of satisfactory cockle breeds of 500 pieces/kg to reproduce in a 1/2 hectare breeding area. In previous crops, with this area, I would have brought down more than 6 tons of breeds, but now due to scarcity and high prices, I have to accept farming less frequently.”

According to farmers in Mai Phu and Loc Ha communes, clam breeding areas in the northern provinces have recently been hit by consecutive storms and floods, affecting the output and quality of the breed. The shortage of supply has led to a scarcity in the market and directly affected the production progress of the Cua Sot clam "barn" as well as other farming areas in the province. This development makes people uneasy because from now until the end of the year is the peak period in production, both harvesting and sowing.

People check the quality and size of the fish before releasing them for farming.

In addition to the scarcity, Ha Tinh farmers also have to suffer losses when buying high-priced, small-sized seeds that are not suitable for farming conditions. Mr. Duong The Vo - Director of Dinh Ban Aquaculture Cooperative (Thach Khe commune) informed: "Our cooperative has 20 members, producing over 60 hectares of alluvial land. Because we reproduce as we harvest, in the next 3 months we need about 300 - 350 tons of various types of clam seeds to reproduce 30 hectares after harvest. What we are most worried about now is that the price of seeds has nearly doubled compared to last year, in which the 500 seeds/kg type costs 25 - 27 million VND/ton, the 1,000 seeds/kg type costs 38 million VND/ton. High prices of seeds will directly affect production, economic efficiency and many other issues."

Ha Tinh currently has 4,234 hectares of mollusk farming, of which the clam farming area accounts for about 90%; localities with large farming areas are Mai Phu, Loc Ha, Thach Khe, and Thien Cam. On average, each year, clam farmers in the area sell about 3,000 tons of commercial clams, with an economic value of 47 - 50 billion VND, creating jobs for thousands of local workers. Therefore, the shortage of clam seeds and high prices of clam seeds will greatly affect production.

Clam farmers plant clams in Cua Sot area.

Mr. Nguyen Van Viet - Director of Viet Hong Aquaculture Cooperative (Mai Phu commune) said: "Because clam farmers in Ha Tinh cannot produce their own clams but have to buy them from Thanh Hoa, Ninh Binh, and Hung Yen provinces, this stage will face many disadvantages. To be proactive in production, my family is willing to extend the farming cycle, accept large losses, and spend time taking care of them... to buy clams of less than 10,000/kg to raise in an alluvial land with a gentle flow. But this method is risky, depends on many factors, and is difficult to implement."