Bangus shortage expected by Christmas
THE Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) is predicting a shortage of milkfish supply from Dagupan in the coming holidays which may drive the price past the P150 a kilo level, or as high as P160 a kilo.
BFAR experts said shortage will be exacerbated by the cold weather spawned by the northwest monsoon that draws winds into the archipelago from Siberia, China and Japan.
The City Agriculture Office (CAO), meanwhile, pegged the shortage of milkfish in Dagupan at about 20 per cent between demand and supply.
The price of milkfish at the Dagupan Fish Market currently ranges from P110 to P150 per kilo.
Dr. Westly Rosario, chief of the National Integrated Fisheries Technology Development Center under BFAR, confirmed that the cold weather is affecting the growth of milkfish in captivity.
During the cold weather, he explained, the milkfish eats less, thus feeding must be undertaken only when the water is warm.
Otherwise, the unconsumed feeds will drop to the bottom of the fishpond and later rot, which will cause water pollution.
At the same time, Rosario revealed a breakthrough at NIFTDC when they were able to make mother sabalos in their hatchery lay eggs for the first time during the cold month, considered an off-season for spawning.
The spawning season for sabalo either in the wild or hatchery is from March to October.
It is a rarity, he said, when they are laying eggs during cold months.
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