A giant shrimp processing vessel, which its owners describe as China’s most-modern vessel of its type, has conducted its maiden voyage.
The ship’s owner and operator, Yuhuan City Jiu Hong Fishing Co., which is based near Taizhou in Zhejiang Province, said at 88 meters in length and 16.5 meters in width, and equipped with a massive shrimp-drying and -freezing factory aboard, the Zhe Bao Yu Ling 66666 is unlike any vessel ever launched before in China.
The Zhe Bao Yu Ling 66666 is a “small aircraft carrier” for multiple smaller fishing vessels that will feed the processing ship, according to Yuhuan City Jiu Hong Fishing Chairman Zhuang Genqing, who spoke at a ceremony in late July before the ship made its maiden voyage from Kanmen headed south for Hainan Province. Zhuang described the new vessel as a “great boost for more sustainable fishing,” as smaller vessels will no longer be required to return to port with their catch.
“The dryer aboard is capable of processing nine tons of shrimp per hour into three tons per hour,” Zhuang said.
Zhuang also said the vessel will improve the quality of the company’s shrimp products through superior and more timely processing capabilities.
“Fast-drying of the shrimp is important, as this reduces salt content,” he said.
Zhuang said the vessels will fish in China’s territorial waters, which is likely to include areas of the South China Sea that have been fiercely contested by other regional powers claiming sovereignty there.
At the ceremony, China Fisheries Association Chairman Chang Zhao Xing said the Zhe Bao Yu Ling 66666 is “99 percent” built of Chinese components and parts, and said the new vessel is important to the local fishery sector’s efforts to “add value through deep processing of seafood products.”
Photo courtesy of Yuhuan City Jiu Hong Fishing Co.
