Kien Giang expands marine aquaculture on industrial scale

Breeding fish in floating cages in Phu Quoc district in the southern province of Kien Giang Province
(Photo: VNA)

Kien Giang (VNS/VNA) — The Mekong Delta province of Kien Giang will expand marine aquaculture on an industrial scale in an aim to improve residents' income and protect the environment on islands and coastal areas from now until 2030, local authorities have said.

The province plans to set aside zones for marine aquaculture in Phu Quoc, Kien Hai and Kien Luong districts, Ha Tien city, Long Xuyen quadrangle and U Minh Thuong areas, according to its Department of Agriculture and Rural Development.
Nguyen Van Tam, director of the department, said the province would develop marine aquaculture in combination with fishery services and tourism.

The province’s marine aquaculture breeds mostly marine fish and bivalve mollusks, but its economic efficiency is not high, Tam said.

The province’s marine aquaculture has high potential but is small scale and has inadequate infrastructure.

Most marine fish breeders are households that use small fish to feed marine fish, causing pollution risks and unsustainable development.

The province lacks factories for producing animal feed as well as factories for processing harvested marine fish. There is also a shortage of establishments that produce marine fish fries.

As of September, the province has 3,464 floating cages that breed various kinds of marine fish species, up 27 per cent against the same period last year.The marine fish species include cobia, grouper, black banded trevally and white pomfret.  

Last year, the province bred nearly 21,800ha of bivalve mollusks with a total output of 66,000 tonnes.

The province estimates that it will be breeding bivalve mollusks on an area of 22,700ha with total output of 78,100 tonnes this year, according to the department.

The province also has about 50 ha of oyster farming area for harvesting pearls in Phu Quoc district. Private enterprise Ngoc Hien Pearl has invested in the area that produced about 250,000 pearls last year. The district’s pearl farming has contributed to tourism.

The province has nearly 200km of coast and favourable natural conditions for breeding fish in floating cages./.