A man takes care of ornamental fish at Saigon Aquarium Corporation in HCM City. (Photo: VNA)
HCM City (VNA) - The Ho Chi Minh Fisheries Sub-department has selected four ornamental fish farms that meet conditions to produce ornamental fish under Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards.
The farms, Dong Khoi Ornamental Fish Farm and Niem Dam Me Discus Farm in Cu Chi district, and AMR Farm and Xanh Tuoi Ornamental Fish Farm in Binh Chanh district, produce ornamental fish for sale in domestic and foreign markets.
The Dong Khoi Ornamental Fish Farm, which covers 4,000 sq.m in Trung Lap Ha commune’s Xom Moi hamlet specialises in producing neon ornamental fish, tiger barb and rummy-nose Tetra for exports.
The Niem Dam Me Discus Farm specialises in producing discus ornamental fish.
The sub-department has provided the farms with quality techniques that meet standards and focus on environmental protection, disease prevention, quality of ornamental fish seed and fish feed.
The city has exported 10.5 million ornamental fish worth 12.7 million USD this year, up 14.8 percent in volume and 10.6 percent in value against the same period last year, according to the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The city has exported 60 more fresh water ornamental fish species. Of the figure, more than 40 species have been produced artificially, while the rest are caught from rivers and springs.
Exports of marine ornamental fish, which have high value, account for 1 percent of the city’s ornamental fish exports.
The city’s ornamental fish is exported to the EU, Asia, America, and South Africa.
Two ornamental fish trading areas are located on Nguyen Thong street in District 3 and Luu Xuan Tin street in District 5.
Vo Thanh Liem, owner of the Da Tuong ornamental fish shop on Luu Xuan Tin street, who has been in business for many years, said the sector is developing strongly.
Wholesale traders in other provinces and cities in the country are visiting HCM City to buy ornamental fish.
Discus ornamental fish tops the city’s list of ornamental fish exports, which has been identified as a key product of the city’s agricultural sector.
The city, which is the country’s largest ornamental fish producer, has about 88ha of land devoted to raising ornamental fish in outlying districts, with more than 290 households involved in production.
The Sai Gon Ornamental Creatures Co-operative in Cu Chi district has worked closely with 80 local ornamental fish farming households to have a stable quantity of ornamental fish for exports.
The cooperative exports about 1.9 million ornamental fish a month.
Nguyen Van Thuy, Chairman of the co-operative, said that demand for ornamental fish huge from both domestic and foreign markets.
The hobby of breeding ornamental fish is no longer limited to those with high incomes, as average-income people can now join in the trade, he added.-VNA
VNA
