Applying sturgeon farming technology in mountainous regions

Highland bright spot

On a mild, sunny afternoon, we arrived at Mr. Ho Thanh Phuong's sturgeon farm in A Nor Village, A Luoi 1 Commune (Hue City). Sipping iced tea, Mr. Phuong recalled that his family belongs to the Pa Co ethnic minority group, which primarily engages in traditional agriculture. However, because production depended heavily on weather conditions and output was unstable, economic efficiency was low and income remained precarious.

Over 10 years ago, he participated in a study tour to observe cold-water fish farming models in the Northwestern mountainous provinces. Upon returning, realizing that the year-round cool climate in the A Luoi highlands was highly suitable for sturgeon, he utilized nearly 3 hectares of his family's garden land to dig ponds and divert stream water. However, due to a lack of capital and experience at that time, he did not dare stock the ponds.

"By 2019, with partial financial support and technical transfer from the Thua Thien Hue Provincial Extension Center (now Hue City Extension Center), combined with the desire to forge a new path for my family's economy, I began deploying the Siberian sturgeon farming model," Mr. Phuong shared.

When first embarking on trial farming, Mr. Phuong faced numerous difficulties, including unfamiliarity with technical protocols and a lack of recirculating aquaculture systems, generators, filtration, and water supply systems, while transporting fingerlings was also arduous due to rugged mountainous terrain. Nevertheless, far from discouraged, he drew lessons step by step, proactively researched, updated his knowledge and techniques in sturgeon farming from various information channels, and contacted extension agencies for guidance to refine the model to fit actual conditions.

The fingerlings were brought by Mr. Phuong from Da Lat, weighing about 50g each, with body lengths of 15-20 cm, and were stocked at a density of 10 fish/m². The water source for sturgeon farming is diverted from streams and passes through multiple filtration stages to ensure cleanliness, high dissolved oxygen content, and water temperatures between 21-25°C. The water must be filtered and changed daily to remove feed residue and impurities.

After years of dedication, Mr. Phuong's Siberian sturgeon farming model has now stabilized with 3 farming ponds. Thanks to step-by-step improvements in technical protocols and the adoption of advanced farming technologies, fish survival rates have risen sharply, meat quality is highly rated by customers, and he can raise 2-3 batches annually, producing 3-5 tons of commercial fish.

Mr. Phuong stated that in the coming time, he will expand the farming scale, diversify sturgeon products, such as smoked sturgeon and frozen processing, combined with eco-tourism and culinary experiences. Concurrently, he hopes to establish linkages with other households to develop a concentrated sturgeon-farming zone, thereby building the A Luoi sturgeon brand.

According to Mr. Nguyen Van Hai, Chairman of the A Luoi 1 Commune People's Committee, locally farmed sturgeon is evaluated to possess high quality and rich nutrition. The locality will coordinate with specialized units to accelerate the transfer of technical progress, support residents in accessing preferential credit sources, improve fingerling quality, and refine sturgeon farming protocols toward safe and sustainable practices. Simultaneously, it encourages the formation of cooperative groups and cooperatives to strengthen production linkages, expand consumption markets, and build the A Luoi sturgeon brand.

Applying technology to build value chains

Mr. Phuong's sturgeon farming model is the first pilot in Hue and is currently part of the project "Applying science and technology to build fingerling rearing and sturgeon farming models along value chains in mountainous communes of Hue City," implemented by the Hue City Extension Center.

The project is deployed across the A Luoi and Nam Dong highlands with a fingerling rearing scale of 150m²/3 locations and a commercial farming scale of 1,500m²/3 locations. After over 3 months of implementing the sturgeon fingerling rearing model, the survival rate reached 63.3%, average weight reached 53.6g/fish, and the number of obtained fingerlings stood at 19,000. The fish survival rate at Mr. Phuong's household reached 70%, fulfilling the project's target.

"Participating in the City Extension Center's project, my family recently stocked 10,000 sturgeon fingerlings, and I am very pleased with the high survival rate," Mr. Phuong shared.

Through the project, the Hue City Extension Center supported the development of a traceability system for sturgeon at Mr. Phuong's household. Besides that, it established a value-chain traceability system for sturgeon products by issuing QR-code labels, supporting label design, machinery, and equipment to monitor farming areas and measure environmental indicators. Concurrently, it organized technical training classes on sturgeon fingerling rearing for farmers across communes in the A Luoi highlands.

Mr. Chau Ngoc Phi, Director of the Hue City Extension Center, stated that through the project, the unit also surveyed natural conditions, needs, investment capacity for fingerling rearing development, farming, and consumption markets to evaluate potential and orient future rearing and farming development.

The Center also received technical protocols for sturgeon fingerling rearing and commercial sturgeon farming from the Coldwater Aquaculture Research Center - Research Institute for Aquaculture No. 1, and will organize training classes for technicians on fingerling rearing, farming, diagnosis, detection, prevention, and treatment of fish diseases.

"We expect that through the project, the sturgeon fingerling rearing and farming model will be replicated in areas possessing suitable water sources and climate conditions across the City. When forming a concentrated farming zone linked with science and technology applications and traceability, sturgeon products will gain extra opportunities to join modern distribution systems, contributing to elevating highland residents' incomes and driving agricultural economic development toward a sustainable direction," Mr. Phi said.

Currently, the sturgeon farming model generates high income for Mr. Phuong's family while creating regular employment for many local workers. "I am combining sturgeon farming development with experiential tourism. Visitors can tour the farming area, hand-feed the fish, learn about cold-water fish farming protocols, and personally prepare and savor sturgeon dishes right on the spot," Mr. Phuong shared.