Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture announced this week that the country’s agriculture industry lost more than USD 2 million (EUR 1.5 million) due to a two-week cold spell in January.
The aquaculture industry lost more than USD 500,000 (EUR 386,200). The damaged farms are located in five counties and cities and raise milkfish, tilapia, clams and Pacific white shrimp. Yunlin and Chiayi counties breed milkfish, tilapia and white shrimp, while the majority of fish farms in Tainan City and County and Kaohsiung County breed milkfish.
Budai and Dongshih townships within Chiayi County recorded a total loss of USD 420,000 (EUR 324,408) worth of milkfish, tilapia and white shrimp on 10.25 acres.
In the Annan district of Tainan City, 15.8 acres of fish farms were affected. In nearby Tainan County’s Cigu, 6.2 acres of milkfish farms were affected, causing a loss of USD 18,000 (EUR 13,900).
A farmer in Tainan reported that temperatures dropped without warning, and farmers to failed to protect their ponds in time. Farm operators tried covering the ponds and pumping in warm water to keep water temperature steady. At the end of cold spell, almost 70 percent of the loss incurred by farmers was fish fry.
The lowest recorded temperature during the spell was 47 degrees F in an area where the temperature rarely drops below 50 degrees F.
In Taiwan, fish farmers breed clams in milkfish ponds to control algae. Local farmers are also concerned about clam price fluctuation when supplies increase. When temperatures increased after the spell, algae started blooming uncontrollably, which also multiplies clam growth.
