Why do sea fish in Quang Ngai caught by local people fetch high prices and traders compete to buy them?

Head of Thanh Duc 2 residential group, Pho Thanh ward (Duc Pho town, Quang Ngai province) Vo Ngoc Duyen said that in the past, everyone here worked as a fisherman, so it was called Cau village. Many well-off people who build large ships invite fishing friends to practice fishing in remote areas.

Life is a joke

Late in the afternoon, Mr. Nguyen Giao, from Thanh Duc 2 residential group, Pho Thanh ward, sat on the porch neatly arranging fishing lines and hooks into the basket. 

After dinner, the whole family gathered together to hook bait with sea shrimp. At about 2 a.m. the next morning, he and his two sons carried their tools to the shore of Nuoc Man lagoon and put them on a wooden boat with a small motor. 

The engine roared, the boat turned its nose toward the ocean through the windy Sa Huynh estuary. In the distance, the electric light on the fishing boat bobbed in the middle of the sea. The wind flowing over the sea at night blew coldly on my skin. The boat breaks the waves and heads out to sea.

About 7 nautical miles from shore, Mr. Giao reduced the throttle and the boat ran slowly, swaying on the water waves. The two children quickly cast their sentences as dawn gradually appeared in the distance. The electric light on the boat illuminates the light blue rope slowly sinking into the water. 

The hook is attached to the fishing line tied to the wire, about two arm's length apart. Each fishing rig is quite long and has several foam buoys floating on the water surface. 

Many fishing rigs connected together with a length of more than 5 nautical miles include thousands of bait hooks to attract hungry fish.

Fishermen in Duc Pho town, Quang Ngai province practice fishing at sea.

After letting go, Mr. Giao and his son opened the package of rice they brought from home to eat. White rice and salty braised fish cooked by his wife's skillful hands relieve fatigue after hours of floating on the water.

Mr. Nguyen Chau My, son of Mr. Nguyen Giao, followed his father to work as a fisherman. 

Then the boat started its engine, drowning out the waves and wind playing on the sea. Mr. Giao steered the boat back to the original fishing spot. The two children rhythmically pulled the fishing line out of the water. 

Their faces were radiant as the fish, the fish, the fish... caught the hook and struggled when pulled out of the water. They quickly removed the fish and put it in an ice box to keep the seafood fresh for a long time. After a while, the fishing rigs were pulled out of the water. 

The boat turned its nose toward the shore. The village gradually appeared in sight. Returning to Sa Huynh fishing wharf, traders were waiting to buy fish for consumption. Mr. Giao and his two children saved the fresh fish to bring home to prepare food for a family meal rich in the flavor of the sea.

“The fishing profession is very difficult, uncle! Usually it's after 1:500 p.m. to return to the wharf, but sometimes it takes until late at night. Many times there are very dangerous storms. Now, there are fewer fish caught than before, but in return they are sold at high prices. On a lucky day, each person earns XNUMX VND, usually a couple of hundred thousand VND," Mr. Giao confided.

A time of prosperity

At the age of 85, Mr. Phan Van Cuc is quite lucid, clearly telling stories about the village, especially the fishing profession here. Previously, fishermen in the village made a living by fishing at sea. 

At night, they hang a bright light to attract fish and squid to take the bait hooked on a hook attached to a string attached to a rod made of bamboo... Then, the fishermen switch to fishing with hundreds of hooks attached to the string. Long and durable cord. 

“In the past, people here did a lot of fishing, mainly bait fishing. Now when I go far away, I immediately know when I meet an elderly person who used to live in the village and say he lives in Cau Sa Huynh hamlet," Mr. Cuc said.

Mr. Cuc said, after liberation, I and four fishermen in the village borrowed from the bank to buy a dynamo to mount on the boat, then set out to sea to practice fishing. 

After that, 4 friends asked to withdraw their capital, leaving me alone to make a living on the water. God does not disappoint, diligence has helped me catch a lot of fresh fish. “At that time there were a lot of fish, one day I caught 2-3 quintals of fish. Many days, I won a big scamp as big as my bicep...", Mr. Cuc recalled.

 Sea fish caught from fishing nets in Duc Pho town (Quang Ngai province) are sold at high prices, always popular with small traders.

As for the leader of Thanh Duc 2 residential group Vo Ngoc Duyen, in the early 80s, Mr. Duyen and many fishermen left their hometown to Nha Trang (Khanh Hoa), to practice fishing in Truong Sa waters. In those days, there were a lot of fish, so after only a few days of fishing at sea, he and his fishing partner returned to shore. Everyone is happy because they have a good income.

“Back then, grouper fish were abundant so business was good. The fishing industry is doing very well," Mr. Duyen confided. Hearing Mr. Duyen say that, Mr. Giao excitedly contributed. I also went in there to fish with my brothers and then later returned to fish in the sea near the shore. Since I was 9 years old, I have been fishing, both far and near the sea, for 49 years now.

There are many concerns

In the past, fishermen from places to Sa Huynh practiced pounding butterfly rakes. They built a wooden truss at the stern of the ship and then tied the net to spread out like butterfly wings as the ship moved forward. Countless large and small fish and shrimp crawl into a net as thick as a giant funnel. 

The amount of seafood collected has prompted fishermen in Cau hamlet to switch to fishing methods following their friends from far away. They were elated with the results, but did not expect that this would be the beginning of a series of difficult days in the future.

Many people have improved new mining methods with double pounding. Two fishing boats sailed in parallel, dragging large and thick nets, scraping seafood from large to small, causing fish and shrimp resources to increasingly decline. 

The sea near the shore is exhausted, they borrow money to convert, build large capacity ships to reach the sea in the hope of increasingly prosperous business. Then the distant sea also ran out of fish and shrimp, causing many people to lose money because the revenue was not enough for expenses. Many fishermen fall into debt.

“After returning from fishing in Nha Trang, I had quite a bit of capital so I borrowed more money to build a boat to practice fishing. In just a short time, I felt it wasn't right so I sold the ship to pay off my debt. Here, many people working as rakes lost money, so they lost their boats and houses because they couldn't repay bank loans," Mr. Duyen said.

Not as lucky as Mr. Duyen, all three of Mr. Cuc's sons borrowed money to build and renovate a fishing boat operating as a fishing boat in the northern seas. The two young children lost money in business and had to sell the ship to pay off their debts.

The youngest son, Phan Van Cong, sold his father's house and land but still has not paid off the loan. Mr. Cong had to work on a fishing boat to earn money to take care of his family. His eldest son was only 15 years old and had to quit school to help work on the ship to help his parents. “The profession of pounding locusts has brought many consequences. The lives of many families are difficult and debt is high," Mr. Cuc sighed.

We said goodbye to Cau village with the sighs of the elders. They feel sad when fish and shrimp run out, their children and grandchildren lose money and are in debt. And, they remember far away days, when fishing boats returned to the shore filled with laughter.