Mr. Tran Thanh Hai, director of Quang Binh Agriculture and Fisheries Extension Center, said that since 2020, the center has implemented a model of all-male king freshwater shrimp farming on inefficient rice-growing land in Dong Trach Township (District 10). Bo Trach) with a size of 6 households, a trial cultivation area of 3ha.
“After 3 years of model implementation, the results show that freshwater tiger shrimp grow well, have little disease and adapt to local ecological conditions. The cultivation season is relatively short and suitable for the growing season in Quang Binh, so the risk of being swept away by floods can be limited. The profitability is 3-4 times higher than rice cultivation,” said Mr. Hai.
The conversion of inefficient rice land into giant freshwater shrimp farming in Dong Trach Township (Bo Trach District) creates a new direction for farmers. Picture: Tam Phung.
With the aim of sustainable aquaculture, more effective use of the potential advantages of saline soils of places, the development of aquaculture species with high quality and economic value, from 2021. Up to now, the all-male giant freshwater shrimp farming model on rice land has been linked inefficient with product consumption and continued to be replicated in Hong Thuy (Le Thuy) communities; Gia Ninh, Ham Ninh, Vinh Ninh (Quang Ninh); Duc Ninh (Dong Hoi City); Dong Trach, Thanh Trach (Bo Trach) with an area of over 9ha, 15 participating households.
We returned to Dong Trach Township, where many households were converting inefficient rice land into a giant freshwater shrimp farm. Mr. Phan De (Dong Trach Township) said that his family boldly converted 0.5 ha of inefficient rice land this year to experiment with all-male king freshwater shrimp. At first the family was quite surprised as they didn’t know much about the cultivation process and techniques. But thanks to the technical guidance of the staff of the Provincial Center for Agriculture and Fisheries Extension, they soon had access to the technical processes of how to take care of the shrimp farming and how to deal with problems.
Mr. De shared, “Crayfish are an aquatic species with high economic value, relatively large size and tasty flesh, so they are popular with consumers. The beauty of breeding giant freshwater shrimp is that this species of shrimp has a wide range of food, in addition to industrial feed, it is possible to use locally available food sources for supplementation such as trash fish, shrimp, etc., thereby reducing production costs, output and revenue increase. Recently, the family harvested shrimp with a profit of more than VND 50 million.
The giant freshwater shrimp breeding model provides farmers with an income of VND 100-120 million/ha. Picture: Tam Phung.
Households participating in the giant freshwater shrimp breeding model are supported with 50% of the seeds and 50% of the materials (medicines, food…). The advantage of the model is to use all-male freshwater king shrimp, because the growth rate of male shrimp is faster, the weight is larger, and the culture time is shortened. In addition, the breeding of giant freshwater shrimp is managed in a scientific manner, the technical process is aimed at reducing diseases, creating safe products, with market links, so that they are easy to consume. ..
Mr. Nguyen Cong Thanh of Ham Ninh Township (Quang Ninh District) said that his family experimented with giant freshwater shrimp in an area of 0.5 ha this year. At the beginning of the breeding season, he released more than 40,000 all-male king freshwater shrimp. After 7 months of farming, without any production costs, his family has an income of about 50 million VND, which is 3 to 4 times that of growing rice.
The all-male giant freshwater shrimp farming model implemented on saline rice land has been ineffective in some places in the province, making an important contribution to creating jobs and increasing income for farmers. According to calculations, people have an income of 100-120 million VND/ha from freshwater shrimp farming. The conversion of low-yielding rice fields into the cultivation of giant freshwater shrimp shows the effectiveness of the model and opens up new avenues in aquaculture.
The area of freshwater shrimp farming on inefficient rice land is growing. Picture: Tam Phung.
Currently, the model is applied and replicated in Le Thuy, Quang Ninh and Bo Trach districts with a total agricultural area of over 40 ha in 2022. In addition to specialized farming, it is possible to mix with some other objects such as white catfish, carp… or in paddy fields. The breeding of giant freshwater shrimp is highly appreciated by farmers and local people as they consider it as a valuable new agricultural object to replace the traditional low-efficiency culture that farmers have been applying…
Crayfish are a relatively new way of farming, a model that not only brings people a stable income, but also changes their production thinking in aquaculture. Mr. Tran Thanh Hai, Director of Center for Agriculture and Fisheries Extension in Quang Binh Province, said: “In the coming period, the center will propose communities to use funding sources to continue to support, disseminate and replicate the rearing model of giant freshwater shrimp on a reasonable scale to ensure the market’s consumption demand and increase production efficiency to increase farmers’ income”.