The research on the technique of raising meat crabs, waiting for the day to change the shell, when fat, to sell at a high price… helps Mr. Xoan earn hundreds of millions of dong per month.
Mr. Dao Phuoc Xoan (34 years old, living in An Thanh commune, Thanh Phu, Ben Tre) is a computer teacher at a local primary school. In addition to his work as a teacher, Mr. Xoan is known as a creative farmer because he continuously successfully researches many effective aquaculture models.
Mr. Xoan said that he had successfully researched and improved shrimp farming technology by himself, and was awarded the Luong Dinh Cua Prize organized by the Central Youth Union, with the “smart shrimp pond” model in 2020. In parallel with For shrimp farming, he studies how to raise high-quality crabs, especially freshly peeled nuggets or two-skinned crabs (preparing to peel) – which have great commercial value.
“Sea crabs in Ben Tre are many, but the commercial value is not really high. Delicious crabs such as crabs with nuggets, crabs with two skins worth 3-4 times more than meat crabs are rarely available on the market.
The reason delicious crabs are very rare is because it is extremely difficult to catch, crabs that are about to peel or have just peeled will stay still in the cave, not moving or looking for bait. Therefore, I find a way to raise crabs to peel right in plastic containers, convenient to harvest at the right time to sell at the best price,” said Mr.
Mr. Xoan started researching crab farming in 2019, with only 60 old paint boxes connected to the system and 240 crabs, with a total value of more than 30 million VND. He took the effort to swim to the sea to get water to raise to ensure the crab’s habitat is as close to nature as possible.
A thousand things start out, crabs die in a row, challenging his perseverance to the limit.
Mr. Xoan said the first batch of crabs raised for about a week died a lot. When I checked, I found that the dead fish were all injured, determined to have been strongly impacted during the fishing process. Nearly tens of millions of dong lost almost all to learn the lesson of choosing the right crab seed.
In the second generation, after a short time, the crabs died again, this time because the crab food bought from the market was not of good quality. Fees are converted into tuition fees.
Continue the 3rd batch, this time after more than 1 month all the crabs died simultaneously in just one night.
“Very depressed, I used to think about stopping. But after I calmed down, thinking about the reason for starting, I carefully examined each step, step by step to find the cause. I finally understood. It is a circulating water system that has brought pathogens from one crab to the whole herd,” said Mr.
After more than a year with tens of millions of “tuition fees” to be paid, Mr. Xoan gradually learned from the seed, the rearing environment, the food and the behavior of the crabs. Having mastered an effective crab farming process, Mr. Xoan confidently replicated the farming model from 60 to 1,000 barrels and linked with many satellite farms inside and outside the province.
“Crab is about to change its shell, the old pubis will protrude, have veins and stop eating. Crab about to peel or just peel is the fattest, most delicious time” – now just catching a crab on Mr. Xoan can say nothing. Details, exact health status and molting date, not inferior to a seasoned fishery engineer.
Mr. Xoan shared, with the purchase price of crabs at about 120,000 VND per kg, after fattening for about 2 months, they can be sold for from 400,000 VND to 600,000 VND / kg depending on the size.($1=24,000 VND)
In plastic containers, crabs are raised continuously all year round, every time he catches the old one, he immediately releases the new one. Crab farming gives Mr. Xoan an income of about 200 million VND per farming season lasting 2 months, of which the profit accounts for over 60%.
“Once I have the process, it’s very easy to raise, it takes almost no time. Changing the water, checking the water for the crabs has a computer to monitor, the food is put in live bait, hungry crabs will catch themselves.
Compared to shrimp farming, crab farming in plastic containers is much more efficient. Currently, the goods I can produce are covered by people, not enough to sell. The value of buying and selling crabs increased 3-4 times,” said Mr.
According(Dan Tri)