Many Vietnamese fish farms destroyed in typhoon

Several Vietnamese fish farms have suffered severe damage following a major storm in the region.

Typhoon Yagi, as it has been called, swept through parts of southern Asia in recent days tearing up aquaculture and fishing facilities.

The damage is estimated to be at least US $120 million with some businesses likely to find it difficult to recover.

According to local reports many small fish farming businesses have been left with little but a great deal of debt, with their livestock and facilities all but wiped out.

A few, but not all businesses, will be insured and may be able to eventually recover. But a large number without insurance face ruin. Livestock and poultry farms, which sometimes run in tandem with fish farms, have also been badly hit.

Vietnam’s deputy minister of agriculture and rural development Phung Duc Tien said the storm has had a severe impact on aquaculture and livestock farming, two of the fastest-growing sectors in Vietnam’s agriculture industry.

Initial assessments show that the storm and subsequent flooding caused the deaths of 22,808 livestock animals and over three million poultry across five heavily affected provinces –  Hai Phong, Quang Ninh, Yen Bai, Hanoi, and Thai Nguyen.

Additionally, aquaculture farmers in the northern provinces from Quang Ninh to Nghe An reported damage to over 23,500 hectares of fish farms, with 4,592 fish cages and nets destroyed. The estimated total financial loss to the aquaculture sector alone was high.

Leaders from the Vietnamese Livestock Production and Fisheries Departments has recommended a number of  measures to help fish and land farmers recover, including postponing debt payments and providing support to rebuild production.

One suggestion is that some fish farmers should consider switching to seaweed farming. And the authorities have offered to provide seaweed seedlings to get them started.