Fishing for Mussels Brings Lucrative Earnings for Farmers

Mussels, small blue shellfish grouped together in freshwater and brackish estuaries, are harvested for a type of feed called bom bop.

Local vendors purchase bom bop from collectors to resell to lobster farmers. This feed can fetch VND350,000 per 100 kilograms and even VND250,000 during peak seasons.

Residents like Nguyen Cuong from Son Tra district in Da Nang seize the opportunity to earn extra income by catching bom bop. A single morning of work can yield hundreds of thousands of dong.

Trinh Ngoc Hung, also from Son Tra district, shares that he can gather 200-300 kilograms of bom bop daily, and on good days, up to 500-600 kilograms, leading to earnings of VND1-1.5 million.

Previously, bom bop was not harvested, but the demand from merchants, who utilize it as lobster feed, has increased in recent years. Sometimes, it can be sold for VND400,000-500,000 per 100 kilograms.

Hung, who normally works in construction, dedicates time to bom bop collection during the harvesting season because it proves to be more profitable than his primary job.

The harvesters, acknowledging the risks involved, equip themselves with gloves, socks, styrofoam boxes, and plastic baskets to carry the mussels. They may even utilize oxygen tanks and diving suits in deeper waters.

By noon, the catchers conclude their collection, bring the styrofoam boxes ashore, clean off the mud using plastic baskets, and sell the bom bop to vendors near the riverbanks.

Although the income can reach millions of dong, the catchers endure long hours submerged in water under the blazing sun. Furthermore, various dangers await underwater, including the risk of accidents leading to loss of life, or encountering sharp objects and broken glass.

“Even with two layers of socks, they are shredded and need replacing after each shift,” explained Hung.