About 4,000 tons of eels in Can Tho are stockpiled
In Can Tho city, the price of commercial eels has recently decreased sharply, causing many farming households to fall into a state of losses, while the amount of eels stockpiled in the people is still very large.
Mr. Lieu Van Can (born in 1965, Co Do commune, Can Tho city) shared that his family started farming eels from November 2024. From then until March 2026, the model brought quite high profits, and during the farming process, they can still work in the fields or work as hired laborers to increase income.
Currently, his family has 5 cages, of which 3 cages with about 6 tons of eels have exceeded the selling time by 2–3 months, and 2 cages have not reached the collection and sale period.
However, according to Mr. Can, currently the price of eels is only 37,000–40,000 VND/kg (3–4 fish/kg type). With that price, if sold, each ton of eels could lose about 15–20 million VND.
Mr. Can added that he is considering further monitoring market developments before deciding to sell. However, if the price continues to be low, eels left for a long time will reduce quality and increase farming costs. The family has not yet participated in any cooperatives.
Similarly, Mr. Tran Trung Tri (Tan Hoa commune, Can Tho city) said that eel prices have dropped sharply while input costs have increased, causing farmers to face a lot of pressure.
According to Mr. Tri, before that, the family had just sold a large batch of eels at a price of more than 70,000 VND/kg. Currently, there are still about 50,000 eels raised in 7 cages, only about 6 months old and need another 2-3 months to be sold.
Every day, the family uses about 20 kg of feed for 7 barns, not including the cost of medicine, digestion and periodic microbiology. Mr. Tri is worried that if the price does not recover, the risk of losses is very high.
With the current situation, my family plans not to invest in a new crop but only focus on taking care of the existing crop and then stop raising it," Mr. Tri said.
According to the Can Tho City Sub-Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Resources Surveillance, eel farming activities are currently concentrated in some communes and wards with large-scale farming such as: Luong Tam, Long My, Phuoc Hung, Hiep Hung, Truong Long Tay, Long My, Dong Phuoc, Vi Thuy, Dai Thanh, Vinh Loi, Thoi An, Binh Thuy, Vinh Trinh and some neighboring areas.
Regarding the situation of eels still in stock at harvest time, on the afternoon of April 22, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy Lam - Deputy Head of the Sub-Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Surveillance (Department of Agriculture and Environment of Can Tho City) informed that the amount of eels in stock in the city is estimated at about 4,000 tons.
However, through actual review from communes and wards, it has been recorded that about more than 1,600 tons of 372 households have reached harvest time but have not been consumed and 44 households are currently raising eels with sizes from 50 - 100 heads/kg that are not yet ready for harvest. Currently, some localities are still continuing to update information about farming households, while the basic inventory output has been determined.
Regarding the average cost, it is currently from 58,000 - 60,000 VND/kg. According to the Deputy Head of the Sub-Department of Fisheries and Fisheries Resources Surveillance, with the current selling price level, most farming households are not profitable, even losing money. This is the direct reason why many households have a mentality of hoarding goods waiting for prices, causing eels to continue to accumulate during harvest, incurring additional costs of feed, electricity, water, care labor and risks of loss during the long farming period.
Farmers in Ca Mau are also struggling
In An Trach commune (Ca Mau province), at this time, the atmosphere in the largest eel farming area in the locality has become heavy when dozens of households have to "hold" eels that are too old, waiting for traders but no one buys them.
According to local statistics, the whole commune currently has about 24 households raising commercial eels with a scale of 8 tons or more being in stock. The total amount of eels not yet consumed is nearly 100 tons. Most of these eels have reached harvest time but cannot be sold due to market stagnation and weak purchasing power.
What worries farmers is that the current eel price is only from 37,000 - 40,000 VND/kg, a sharp decrease compared to previous years and considered the lowest level ever. Meanwhile, the cost of breeds, feed, electricity, water and care labor are all increasing, causing eel farmers to suffer heavy losses.
Mr. Nguyen Hoang Linh said that he had previously seen the eel price go up to about 80,000 VND/kg, so he boldly invested more than 400 million VND to build a farm and buy breeds.
Currently, I still have more than 5 tons of eels that are about 4 months old. If sold at the current price, I will lose heavily, and keeping them will still cost more food and electricity and water every day. My family is under a lot of pressure," Mr. Linh shared.
On April 22, Mr. Dang Minh Phap - Chairman of An Trach Commune People's Committee - informed that the locality has proactively contacted professional departments under the Department of Agriculture and Environment, and at the same time connected traders, eateries, and consumption establishments in the province to support people.
However, according to Mr. Phap, consumption capacity is currently very limited, so it is not possible to solve the large amount of eel in stock. "For many years, eel farming has been a model that brings in a decent income for local people. This year, prices have dropped deeply beyond expectations, causing people many difficulties," Mr. Phap said.
Faced with this situation, eel farmers hope that functional sectors will soon have solutions to connect the market, expand output, and avoid prolonged losses for people.
