The decrease in soft-shell turtle prices is a problem that many households in My Tu district (the capital of soft-shell turtle farming in Soc Trang province, with about 200 households raising soft-shell turtles) have been worried about. Because with the current soft-shell turtle price, soft-shell turtle farmers do not make a profit, or even suffer losses when the selling price is equal to or lower than the investment and care cost.
Mr. Nguyen Yen Thanh in Phuoc Tho B hamlet, My Phuoc commune, My Tu district said that the price of soft-shell turtles has dropped sharply like never before, currently only 165,000 VND/kg for the price of grade 1 soft-shell turtle meat (grade 1, from 1.5 - 2kg/piece) while in 2022 it was from 300,000 - 330,000 VND/kg.
Mr. Thanh has 5 ponds, including about 5,000 small soft-shell turtles and about 4,000 meat turtles. The cost of food spent each day is 500,000 VND for the entire area, but selling is difficult. Because traders from other provinces rarely come to buy because they think that consumption is decreasing from customers elsewhere.
Mr. Thanh collects soft-shell turtle eggs, then hatches them to collect soft-shell turtle breeds.
The price of soft-shell turtles is now only 1,300 VND/turtle, not 2,700 VND/turtle like before.
To save on raising costs, Mr. Nguyen Yen Thanh's family in Phuoc Tho B hamlet, My Phuoc commune, My Tu district cooks porridge for the turtles to eat to survive.
The turtle farming model of Ms. Vo Thi Thong Thiet in My Phuoc commune also encountered a similar situation. Ms. Thiet said that her family had 3 ponds for raising turtles, but 2 of them were suspended, leaving only 1 pond with about 2,000 turtles (of various sizes).
According to Ms. Thiet, in the past, the price of soft-shell turtles was high and consumption was stable, bringing the family an income of 300,000 - 400,000 VND/day. But now, due to slow output, the family is no longer able to invest and is forced to hang up 2 ponds. To save money, her family also cooks porridge for soft-shell turtles to eat every day.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Diem - Head of the Cooperative Group for raising soft-shell turtles in Phuoc Tho B hamlet also hung up a pond. Currently, her family only has one pond left to raise soft-shell turtles with about 1,500 turtles (from 100 - 200 grams/turtle).
Ms. Diem said that she has been involved in the turtle farming business for 14 years and this is the first time the turtle price has dropped so much that the selling price is equal to the investment cost.
"It is inevitable that market prices will go up and down, but this price decrease has lasted from mid-2023 until now, causing disappointment for soft-shell turtle farmers," said the head of the soft-shell turtle farming cooperative in Phuoc Tho B hamlet.
According to the People's Committee of My Phuoc Commune (My Tu District), the locality currently has 90 households raising soft-shell turtles, with an average scale of 500m2/household. The Phuoc Tho B Soft-shell Turtle Cooperative in the commune alone has 14 members, of which up to 50% of the households have suspended their ponds, waiting for prices.
Currently, the whole Soc Trang province has over 30,000 soft-shell turtles being raised commercially. Of these, My Tu district is one of the concentrated, large-scale farming areas, with nearly 200 households raising soft-shell turtles. The consumption of soft-shell turtles here mostly depends on a few traders from outside the province who come to buy.
Source: https://danviet.vn/nuoi-ba-ba-dac-san-bo-day-dac-de-la-liet-trung-nong-dan-soc-trang-chan-vi-gia-ban-giam-50-20240805162202966.htm
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