The nation’s largest and the first government-funded live fish carrier vessel, Tai Hung 39, set out on its first voyage on Thursday from Taiwan to China.
The 276 tonne vessel, with a carrying capacity of 36 tonnes, which is five times that of traditional boats, is expected to help Taiwan increase its efficiency in exporting live fish, mainly grouper, to China.
An inauguration ceremony was held at the Cijin (旗津) fishing port in Greater Kaohsiung, where the vessel set sail, after scores of trucks carrying live grouper unloaded their cargoes onto the boat.
Council of Agriculture (COA) Minister Chen Wu-hsiung (陳武雄) said the government subsidized the building of the vessel to make live fish transport more efficient, as well as to save energy.
He predicted that the launch of Tai Hung 39 would help boost Taiwan’s grouper exports because the vessel boasts a larger carrying capacity, cuts the carrying cost by half and shortens transportation time, which ensures the freshness of the fish.
There are 18 live fish carrier vessels in Taiwan. Since most of these boats were converted from old fishing boats, the equipment on the boats needs to be upgraded, officials from the council’s Fisheries Agency said.
Officials said that Tai Hung 39 was specially designed to carry live fish and that its seawater circulation system, oxygen delivery efficiency and drainage functions were much better than those of traditional live fish carriers.
It is also equipped with a temperature control system seldom seen on live fish carriers that allows the water on the vessel to be kept at the best temperature for the fish, officials said.
Taiwan’s grouper exports have increased from 1,840 tonnes, worth NT$400 million (US$13.16 million), in 2008 to 7,958 tonnes, worth NT$2.4 billion, this year, the Fisheries Agency said.
Grouper prices have also risen from NT$292.6 a kilogram in 2008 to NT$400 a kilogram, the agency said.
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