Local flavor

Discovering age-old fish drying craft in central Vietnam

Fish drying is the traditional craft in Binh Minh village of Quang Nam province, that has created jobs for locals and helped them make ends meet for years.

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28 July, 2022

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discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 2 — The fish harvesting season begins from April and typically lasts through to August.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 3 — Fish cutters are hired in order to remove the scales, guts, bones, and heads of fresh fish after they are caught.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 4 — During the peak season, dried fish producers must hire additional workers in order to clean, debone, marinate, and dry the fish in the sun.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 5 — There are dozens of fish steamers working at one time, with fishes steamed continuously for up to five minutes depending on different species.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 6 — Fishes are moved to the steaming area.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 7 — A worker is in charge of steaming the fish.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 8 — Steamers are usually busy for the entire day.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 9 — After being steamed, the fish is then brought outside for drying.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 10 — Dried fish is subsequently sold to traders throughout Khanh Hoa province.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 11 — Dried fish is in high demand, and production workshops operate at full capacity.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 12 — Workers often check dried fish to ensure their quality before sales.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 13 — Each production workshop hires between seven and 10 workers on average.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 14 — During sunny days, it normally only takes one day to dry the fish.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 15 — Fishes are collected, packed, and then transported to traders.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 16 — Before the COVID-19 pandemic broke out, local villagers earned a lot of money from exporting dried fish to China.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 17 — A woman says that fish drying has helped her to earn an extra income over the past dozen years.

discovering age-old fish drying craft in central vietnam picture 18 — A large scale production workshop can be seen from high above.