April 2, 2007

 

Vietnam catfish farmers go online
 
 

To meet the increasing demand for the popular basa catfish, farmers in Mekong Delta region are using a new website called Wikimapia to identify the best places to breed catfish in the Tien and Hau Rivers.

 

The website, owned by the same company that runs the online encyclopaedia Wikipedia, has a wealth of aerial photographs and satellite images from around the world, including Vietnam.

 

Farmers say the images give them a better idea of where catfish are likely to mature best.

 

The "land hunters", a new name coined for catfish breeders said they are now focusing on two rivers that cross into Can Tho and Tra Vinh Provinces.

 

Farmers say the two rivers have become ideal spots to breed fish since it has strong currents to "oxygenate the waters and a stable ecosystem devoid of pollutants".

 

Last year, fish breeders almost doubled their profits when the price of catfish reached VND15,000 (US$0.93) per kilogramme.

 

The price jumped again in early 2007 to VND17,000 (US$1.06) per kilogramme  or VND7,000 ($0.43) more than it costs to breed the lucrative fish.

 

Due to its strong revenue sales from both domestic and abroad, fish farmers in the area have been wallowing in luxuries like cars and boats.

 

But as the value of catfish rises, so too does that of the land where farmers set up shop. A price of aquaculture land can cost VND 280 million (US$17,000) depending on the soil or the fishing grounds are.

 

The price for 1,000 square meters of land in the region went from VND50 million ($3,125) to VND200 million.  another prime breeding location.

 

A 10,000 square meter of fishing land is worth anything from VND700 million (US$43,750) to VND1 billion (US$62,500).

 

But farmers aren't worried by the steep land costs they can recover their investment within a year, she says. Producing the fish costs around VND14,000 ($0.87) with the added expense of purchasing land.

 

Le Van Thanh, a cultivator from Binh Minh District, says there may not be enough land to meet farmers' needs if the price stays between VND180 million ($11,250) to 200 million.