Policy Institutions Relevant to the Clam Industry

The encroachment of tourism on the sea in Can Gio district, Ho Chi Minh City has caused the loss of clam farming area and affected more than 1,000 hectares.

Although the potential area for clam farming is quite large and the TSLN is higher than the two main export farming objects in inland waters such as tiger prawn and pangasius, in the last 4 years, the use of alluvial land for clam farming in the whole region has been only 34% of the potential area at most, especially in the last 3 years, there has been no sign of an increase in farming area due to lack of breeds and the mass death of farmed clams in late 2007 and early 2008, causing many farming facilities to suffer losses that have not yet been recovered. By the end of 2009, the farming area had only reached 7,800 hectares, accounting for 27% of the potential area. In region II alone, the use of potential area for clam farming development is insignificant. In 2006, Bac Lieu had 8 cooperatives established but only 5 of them were engaged in aquaculture. At the same time, Ca Mau had also established 22 groups and units, but only Khai Long Cooperative was involved in aquaculture. Other organizations and unions were not able to organize production because local people did not support their participation in contributing capital. In 2007, after the harvest, all cooperatives in Bac Lieu suffered losses, except for Thang Loi Cooperative of Bac Lieu Town, which made a profit and continued to farm 160 hectares (only 1.74% of the area with potential for aquaculture). Khai Long Cooperative in Dat Mui, Ngoc Hien (Ca Mau) did not continue farming in 2008 due to the rampant illegal exploitation of clam seeds by clam bandits. In addition, aquaculture cooperatives in Cu Lao Dung district (Soc Trang) were established but mainly to manage and exploit natural seeds for sale (Table 4.1).

The survey results show that the total commercial clam output of the coastal area of the Mekong Delta (2006-2009) reached 158,581 tons, 1.5 times lower than the previous 4-year period. This problem has 3 causes: (1) Due to fluctuations in natural seed resources; (2) The strong development of clam seed farming in Nam Dinh and Thai Binh; (3) In late 2007 and early 2008, clams died en masse from Can Gio, Ho Chi Minh City to Bac Lieu, causing the Can Gio area (Ho Chi Minh City) to suffer a loss of more than 80%. Tra Vinh had 5/10 cooperatives/groups suffering losses and Bac Lieu had 4/5 cooperatives failing and not continuing to raise in 2008 and 2009.

Table 4.1: Clam farming area of coastal provinces in the Mekong Delta and Ho Chi Minh City

Location

Potential area (ha)

Farming area (ha) Output (tons)

2006 2007 2008 2009 2006 2007 2008 2009

Region I

30,100	19,316	7,166	9,630	8,454	7,610	37,117	47,783	37,202	35,016
Ho Chi Minh City	2,000	1,584	1,342	1,584	1,372	528.2	15,145	15,792	8,492	2,385
Tien Giang	5,000	3,000	2,150	2,300	2,300	2,028.0	17,714	18.85	20,000	23,158
Ben Tre	15,000	8,532	2,537	3,436	2.24	4,200.0	2,602	7,741	4.110	8,000
Tra Vinh	8,100	6.2	1,137	2,310	2,542	854.0	1,656	5,400	4,600	1,473
Region II	20,066	9,200	61	6	80	190	37	166	160	1,150
Soc Trang	5,350	3,500	0	0	0	0.0	0	0	0	0
Bac Lieu	12,337	4,500	55	3	80	160.0	25	126	160	1,000
Ca Mau	2,379	1,200	6	3	0	30.0	12	40	0	150
Total	50,166	28,516	7,227	9,636	8,534	7,800	37,154	47,949	37,362	36,166

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4.1.2 Source of clam seeds for commercial farming

Natural clam seeds

The source of natural clam seeds for commercial clam farming in the Mekong Delta, including the two provinces of Nam Dinh and Thai Binh (North), was previously mainly in the clam fields of Tien Giang and Ben Tre. In recent years, clam seeds have appeared in many places: Soc Trang, Bac Lieu, Ca Mau and even Can Gio, Ho Chi Minh City. In 2008 in Tra Vinh, clam seeds appeared with a much larger output than before in the three clam farming cooperatives of Phuoc Thien, Dong Ho and Kiem Lam with an estimated output of over 1 ton of clams of 100-200 thousand/kg; Can Gio district, Ho Chi Minh City from September to November 2009, the amount of clam seeds exploited was estimated at over 20 tons with a size of 500 thousand to 1 million/kg with an estimated revenue of over 100 billion VND. In particular, at Khai Long beach of Ngoc Hien district (Ca Mau), clam seeds have also appeared with a reserve that is difficult to estimate. However, with the average number of people exploiting each day reaching 3 to 5 thousand people during 2 to 3 months at the time when clams appear (July to September of 2008 and 2009), the output must be several times higher than Can Gio, Ho Chi Minh City.

In addition, due to the high price of commercial clams, the source of medium clams in the two provinces of Ben Tre and Tien Giang is only sold when the density is too high, there is no beach to thin out or the beach conditions fluctuate during the monsoon season. Therefore, the source of natural medium clams for farming in the region is currently lacking.

very large, although the natural seed resources in the region are capable of meeting more than 1/3 of the potential area in the provinces in the southern Mekong Delta if there are good solutions in managing and protecting natural clam seed beds for reasonable exploitation to supply areas with conditions for raising clam seeds. Moreover, after 2008, in Can Gio district (HCMC), the number of facilities raising from bran clams to medium-sized clams previously supplied for commercial farming has decreased significantly due to the death of cultured clams in 2008 and clam pirates destroying natural seed exploitation grounds in 2009.

Currently, there are many types of exploitation sizes, depending on the natural conditions of the beach or the management capacity of cooperatives/groups. Before 2005, the common exploited size was about 50 - 100 thousand clams/kg and most of this clam seed was sold to Nam Dinh and Thai Binh. The remaining small amount was sold to farming facilities in Can Gio beach, Ho Chi Minh City and Go Cong (Tien Giang) to raise clam seeds with a size of less than 5 thousand clams/kg. However, the purpose of these facilities is not to raise medium-sized clams for sale but to raise them commercially, unless the density when reaching medium-sized clams is too thick or the price of seeds increases, then these facilities collect and sell them to commercial farming facilities in the area. After 2005, due to the high price of commercial clams and the scarcity of breeds, farmers in Nam Dinh and Thai Binh bought smaller sized clams at about 400-500 thousand/kg, sometimes even up to 1 million/kg. Since then, the size of exploited breeds has not depended much on the buyer. Moreover, because previously, exploiters or traders did not have experience in detecting small sized breeds (sand grains), now many exploiters and traders know how to easily identify grade I clams.

According to the survey, clam seeds appear earliest around April and last until September (lunar calendar) but are concentrated from April to June (lunar calendar) and this is the time when most people exploit. The output and frequency of clam seeds also vary from year to year. The location of clam seeds also changes compared to previous years, such as in Can Gio, Tra Vinh and Ca Mau.

The current form of organization of management and exploitation of varieties in the research area has 3 main forms, including:

(i) Individual form: This is a form of free exploitation, concentrated in 3 localities: Vinh Chau district (Soc Trang), Hoa Binh and Dong Hai districts (Bac Lieu), Ngoc Hien district (Ca Mau) and recently Can Gio district of Ho Chi Minh City. Exploitation activities are mostly spontaneous due to local authorities.

The locality has not yet assigned land use rights to organizations or individuals for management or has been assigned but is unable to manage and protect them for proper exploitation.

(ii) Form of cooperative groups: Concentrated in Can Gio district (HCMC) and Go Cong Dong (Tien Giang). This is a voluntary form of individuals who have adjacent land leased from the State to gather together to facilitate the organization of management and protection of seed exploitation or commercial clam farming.

(iii) Form of cooperatives/cooperatives: Concentrated in localities such as: Tan Phu Dong Cooperative (Tien Giang); Dong Tam, Rang Dong, An Thuy, Tan Thuy, Bao Thuan, Thanh Loi, Thanh Loi, Doan Ket, Binh Minh Cooperatives (Ben Tre); Tien Thanh, Thanh Cong, Dong Tien, Thanh Dat, Ba Vinh, Phuong Dong, Phuong Nam, Dong Ho Cooperatives (Tra Vinh), Cu Lao Dung Cooperatives (Soc Trang); and Thang Loi, Bien Dong Cooperatives (Bac Lieu) and Khai Long, Ngoc Hien Cooperatives (Ca Mau).

The management of exploitation and protection of clam seed resources in localities is currently not guaranteed, except for some beaches in Tien Giang, Ben Tre and Tra Vinh which are being well managed and preserved. Beaches that have been formed and produced stably for many years such as: Can Gio Beach (HCMC), Thanh Loi Cooperative (Ben Tre), Vinh Chau (Soc Trang), Hoa Binh (Bac Lieu) and Khai Long (Ca Mau) have unstable security situation when clam seed season comes. Currently, localities and direct producers still do not have effective solutions for the management of exploitation and protection of natural clam seed resources.

Artificial clam seed source

Currently, artificial clam seed production has been expanded quite rapidly. In 2008, the whole region had only 02 clam seed production farms: 01 farm of Tien Giang Aquatic Breeding Center and 01 farm of Tra Vinh Aquatic Breeding Center. In 2009, in Go Cong Dong (Tien Giang), 5 new private/THV farms were established and produced about 48.1 million grade II clams. Recently (2010), this area also built 04 more clam seed production farms and one farm expanded its production scale.

In the current situation of scarce and increasing seed prices (clams of 0.7-1 million/kg cost 7-15 VND/clam; 50,000 to 200,000/kg cost 30-20 VND/clam and 200-600/kg cost 160-120 VND/clam), the successful production of clam seeds has opened up a great prospect for the development of clam farming in the coastal provinces of the Southern Mekong Delta in particular and the whole country in general in the coming years.

Clam breeding

After the successful results of the experimental rearing of grade I clams to grade II in cement tanks and tarpaulin-lined earthen ponds in 2007 by the Tien Giang Aquatic Breeding Center and the results of grade I clam rearing in earthen ponds in the Nam Dinh and Thai Binh provinces in the North. Now, in the clam industry, there is a new group of agents working in the grade I clam rearing profession in tarpaulin-lined earthen ponds, bringing in very high profits and especially from here, it will open up a great prospect to be able to proactively solve the problem of breeds for commercial farming in the region in the future. Because, the coastal area of the Mekong Delta, although has a very large amount of natural grade I clams every year, due to natural conditions or management capacity, is forced to exploit with small size and sell most of them to the two provinces of Nam Dinh and Thai Binh, for many years now, no technical solution has been found to raise them to avoid the freshwater season or the monsoon causing small sized clams to die or be washed away by waves.

In 2008, in Tan Thanh commune, Go Cong Dong district (Tien Giang), 18 households bought grade I clams naturally exploited in Ca Mau to raise in 30,750 m2 of tarpaulin-lined earthen ponds. With an initial stocking volume of about 2.5 billion clams; average size 300-500 thousand clams/kg, after 2 months of raising, the size reached 50 thousand clams/kg, the profit was nearly 10 billion VND, with an average profit margin of 1 dong of capital for 1 dong of profit. Preliminary report on mollusk farming in 2008 and direction for 2009)

Because the short incubation time brings high efficiency, in 2009, the first-class clam incubation profession on tarpaulin-lined earthen ponds in Tan Thanh commune, Go Cong Dong (Tien Giang) developed quite vigorously, attracting many participants and many places to visit and study.

After Tien Giang province, Can Gio district (HCMC) also has a strong movement of raising clams at level I on tarpaulin-lined earthen ponds. In 2009, in the area of Can Thanh and Long Hoa communes of Can Gio district (HCMC), there were 10 groups raising clams from level I to level II, with the initial number of seeds released being 1,225 million/1,007 ha. After 81 days of raising, from the average release size of 363 thousand/kg to 98 thousand/kg, the profit was estimated at 7.8 billion VND with a profit margin of one capital for 0.83 VND profit.

In Dat Mui commune, Ngoc Hien district (Ca Mau) alone, from August to September of the 2009 lunar calendar, there were more than 200 households raising grade I clams in temporary tarpaulin-lined tanks, with a very narrow area of 10-50 m2/tank. This form of raising is not the same as in Can Gio (HCMC) and Go Cong Dong (Tien Giang). Because, the breeders are households who go to exploit the breed in the wild to temporarily store it and wait for traders to sell, the raising time

very short, sometimes only a few days, at most 2-3 weeks. As a result, many households suffered losses due to rudimentary investment, lack of technical knowledge, the price of grade II clam seeds dropped sharply at the time when households had an outbreak of hatching, and especially because traders in the region colluded with traders outside to buy at a lower price.

Another important information in the field of breeding is that grade II clams from artificial breeding were raised on the tidal flats of the clam area of Tan Phu hamlet, Tan Thanh commune, Go Cong Dong district (Tien Giang). Through monitoring, the growth rate and loss rate were both at normal levels, with no difference compared to naturally spawned clams.

4.1.3 Policy institutions related to the clam industry

Over the years, the Government has introduced many policies and mechanisms to support and promote the development of aquaculture in the country in general and clam farming in coastal areas in particular. The Government's support policies are reflected in many aspects such as:

(i) Planning, allocating or leasing land and water surfaces to economic sectors for stable and long-term aquaculture use;

(ii) Support capital for poor farmers and fishermen in remote areas to borrow capital without having to mortgage assets and enjoy preferential policies to develop aquaculture according to current regulations;

(iii) State budget capital provided for planning, infrastructure construction, science and technology on breeds, construction of monitoring stations, environmental forecasting, national nature reserves, human resource training, fisheries extension activities, management, programs and tax incentives for organizations and individuals of all economic sectors participating in the implementation of aquaculture development programs according to the provisions of the Law on Domestic Investment Promotion (amended) and current regulations.

These policies are also reflected in the following documents:

(i) Decision No. 224/1999/QD-TTg dated December 8, 1999 of the Prime Minister approving the aquaculture development program for the 1999-2010 period;

(ii) Decision No. 103/2000/QD-TTg dated August 25, 2000 of the Prime Minister on a number of policies to encourage the development of aquatic breeds;

(iii) Prime Minister's Decision No. 112/2004/QD-TTg dated June 23, 2004 approving the Aquatic Breed Development Program to 2010.

(iv) Decision No. 126/2005/QD-TTg dated June 1, 2005 of the Prime Minister on a number of policies to encourage the development of aquaculture at sea and on islands;

(v) Decision No. 2194/QD-TTg, dated December 25, 2009, approving the Project on development of agricultural and forestry plant varieties, livestock breeds and aquatic breeds until 2020. This Decision creates conditions for localities to continue implementing programs on breeds, especially for new breeds that are in great demand such as clam breeds for aquaculture development on coastal alluvial land of the country in general and the coastal areas of the Mekong Delta in particular.

The above Decisions have provided good support for policies for localities to promote the implementation of projects, topics and plans in many fields to promote the potential advantages of each region for comprehensive and sustainable aquaculture development. However, the application of the Central Government's support policies in many coastal localities in the Southern Mekong Delta in recent times has been very slow, especially the implementation of planning, long-term land allocation, technology development for seed production and capital support policies for aquaculture development in general and clam farming in particular.

Particularly in the field of management and control of food safety conditions, the Minister of Fisheries previously issued a number of Decisions on: "Regulations on Food Safety Control in the Harvest of Bivalve Molluscs"; "Program on Food Safety Control in the Harvest of NTHMV" and recently the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development issued the following Decisions:

- Decision No. 131/2008/QD-BNN dated December 31, 2008 of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on promulgating the Regulation on Food Safety Control in the Harvest of Freshwater Aquatic Plants. This Decision replaces Decision No. 640/1999/QD-BTS dated September 22, 1999 on promulgating the Regulation on Food Safety Control in the Harvest of Freshwater Aquatic Plants.

- Decision No. 863/1999/QD-BTS dated November 30, 1999 on amending the Regulation on Food Safety Control in the Harvest of Aquatic Animal Husbandry of the Minister of Fisheries.

Thanks to the above Decisions, the program has so far controlled many farming objects such as Ben Tre white clams, silk clams, blood cockles, razor clams, anti-clams, fan scallops and geoducks in 16 NTHMV farming areas in 9 provinces and cities, including Ho Chi Minh City, Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Kien Giang, Binh Thuan, Thai Binh,

Nam Dinh and Quang Ninh. This program, through practical application, has met the requirements of the European Commission and the regulations of the United States, Japan, Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Moreover, the decision-making also has the nature of supporting sustainable development in the management and formation of protected areas for parent clam resources, natural clam breeding grounds, and linking production facilities for sustainable development.

Based on the legal decisions of the Government and Central Ministries in the past time, the provinces in the region have also, to different degrees, issued a number of regulations and policies to support the development of the local clam industry, such as: approving planning and carrying out procedures for allocating coastal alluvial land and newly emerging sandbanks for clam and blood cockle farming and implementing a number of policies to support preferential loans for the poor to contribute capital to clam farming, or taking advantage of foreign capital through specific poverty reduction and living standards improvement programs such as:

- Decision approving clam farming development planning of Bac Lieu (2005), Ben Tre (2007) and Tra Vinh (2007) provinces...

- Official dispatch No. 4266/UBND-CN of Tien Giang Provincial People's Committee dated August 4, 2008 on Alluvial land allocation to organizations and individuals in the province.

- Decision No. 3745/QD.UB dated September 29, 2005 of Tien Giang Provincial People's Committee on allowing the implementation of the scientific and technological project "Receiving and transferring technology for the production of Meretrix lyrata clam seeds in Tien Giang".

- Decision No. 949/QD-UBND, dated June 3, 2005 of Tra Vinh Provincial People's Committee on approving the project of raising Clams and Blood Cockles for export.

- Decision No. 16/2009/QD-UBND Ben Tre, dated September 10, 2009, on promulgating regulations on management of production, hatchery and commercial clam farming in Ben Tre province. In addition, at the district level, there are also many official dispatches and directives related to the clam industry, especially in the coordination work to manage natural seed resources, which we could not collect in the scope of this study.

4.2 General situation of groups of actors participating in the clam industry

4.2.1 Age, gender, production experience of the owner

The survey shows that the owners of establishments participating in the clam industry have a high level of

Age ranged from 30 to 58 years old, including the clam trader group.