May 10, 2011

Hong Kong AFCD promotes farming of jade perch

The Hong Kong Agriculture, Fishery and Conservation Department (AFCD) has introduced the local quality fish jade perch (Scortum barcoo) and plans to promote it among aquaculture farmers.

The Department has been working to find appropriate new culture species with lucrative market potential as part of an effort to satisfy market demand for safe quality food. The jade perch - native to Queensland, Australia - thus far has appeared to be a suitable candidate for pond fish culture. The AFCD will endorse these new species to fish farmers after it completes successful trials.

Jade is a popular food product in Asia in part due to its rich nutritional content and high percentage of poly-unsaturated fatty acids.

Seven years ago, the AFCD ran collaborative tests on the culture of jade perch with the ultimate aim of aiding fish farmers in their endeavour to secure a stable supply of fish fry more economically. In 2005 and 2006, the Department conducted trials on the hatching of jade perch eggs.

The process entailed importing batches of fertilised eggs from their native land. The eggs were subsequently hatched and reared in temperature-controlled tanks in order to generate local fish fry.

The AFCD has been triumphant in recent years teaching the culture and fry rearing methods of jade perch to local aquaculture farmers.

All fish farms raising jade perch in Hong Kong have registered themselves under the Accredited Fish Farm Scheme, which was initiated by the AFCD to help farmers sharpen their product competitive edge and create and promote local brand names for quality fish including grey mullet (Mugil cephalus) and giant grouper (Epinephelus lanceolatus).

The registered fish farms must agree to various good aquaculture practices and quality assurance tests, such as tests on the fish designed to find traces of any drug residues and heavy metals and thus meet all cultured fish safety standards. All the accredited fishery products come with tags boasting the label "Accredited Fish Farm Scheme."

So far, 100 fish farms have participated in the project. The AFCD intends to keep on helping local fish farmers as they modernise and expand their fish fry hatching and breeding methods through technical aid, training and trial schemes.