Raising sturgeon is no longer too difficult for Yen Bai people.

Yen Bai - Being a cold-loving species and requiring a natural clean water source as a living environment, sturgeon used to be raised only in Sa Pa (Lao Cai) and Da Lat ( Lam Dong ), but in recent years, sturgeon farming models have been formed and expanded more and more in localities in the province, marking success in the process of conquering this difficult fish species.

The pioneering farms raising cold-water fish (sturgeon, salmon) on Khau Pha peak have opened a new but promising direction in Mu Cang Chai district. Up to now, the district has 4 sturgeon farms, with a farming area of over 1.6 hectares, supplying the market with nearly 90 tons of fish annually.

This fish is quite picky when it comes to living in clean water and lots of oxygen, so the care process must always monitor and check the water environment regularly every day to ensure the fish grow well.

According to fish farmers here, the important thing when raising sturgeon is to manage the water environment, including controlling the amount of oxygen, adjusting and maintaining continuous water flow and maintaining the water temperature at an appropriate level. Therefore, in the summer when the temperature shows signs of rising, it is necessary to have a solution to reduce the water temperature, such as covering it with black nets to prevent heat.

In addition, it is also necessary to check the growth rate of the fish to adjust the diet. Feeding must also be based on the water temperature, cold water feeds less, warm water feeds more. Fish feed is mainly industrial bran with appropriate protein and lipid content. In addition to selling to key facilities in many provinces across the country, some farms also open restaurant services, providing nutritious fish dishes on-site for tourists , becoming a specialty dish that attracts customers.

In Tran Yen district, sturgeon is raised in Viet Hong commune with 4 small and medium-sized farming facilities, of which Mr. Hoang Van Binh's model in Ban Na is the largest, with the largest scale, including 11 commercial fish tanks and 24 fish nursery tanks.

Mr. Binh shared: "After many years of conquering sturgeon, we have mastered the techniques of breeding and raising commercial sturgeon. Although this profession does not require much care, it requires high technical requirements, especially ensuring adequate supply of clean, cold water, disinfection, and adjusting the water temperature to the correct standards so that the fish will be less susceptible to disease and grow well. The fish's food is not too fussy, mainly industrial food. In addition, they can eat shrimp and small prawns."

Commercial sturgeon raised for 15 months will reach a weight of 2 - 2.5 kg/fish or more and can be sold. Currently, each batch, Mr. Binh's facility can raise 5,000 commercial fish, with revenue reaching 1.5 billion VND. The consumption market is quite stable with an average selling price of 15,000 - 17,000 VND/fish; commercial fish have an average price of 200,000 - 250,000 VND/kg, much higher than other types of farmed fish.

Sturgeon has also been successfully raised in Na Hau commune, Van Yen district with the participation and systematic investment of Na Hau Agricultural and Tourism Cooperative. Sturgeon farming here has a combination of 4 houses: farmers, scientists, managers and businessmen.

Accordingly, the Cooperative has cooperated with the Institute of Applied Research and Development, Hung Vuong University to transfer commercial sturgeon farming techniques to help limit risks; management skills towards expanding stable product consumption and promoting products. Thanks to that, the farming process to product output are all well operated according to the value chain.

Currently, the cooperative has 13 members with 24 floating tarpaulin tanks, 2 tarpaulin-lined ponds and 4 reinforced concrete tanks, with a scale of raising 10,000 fish/batch. On average, the cooperative sells about 8,000 commercial fish per batch, with an average output of over 20 tons/year, with stable output, thereby creating jobs and income for many local Mong workers.

Na Hau sturgeon products have also achieved 3-star OCOP certification at the provincial level in 2022. To further develop, the Cooperative has also applied VietGAP standards to the Na Hau sturgeon brand.

It can be seen that sturgeon farming in the province has shown its effectiveness in bringing high productivity, product quality, and great economic value; creating unique products for local tourism, contributing to changing the rural economic structure, solving employment and increasing income for people.

Hoai Anh

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