Breeding center for freshwater fish comes into operation

Interior of Nansha's freshwater fish breeding center. [Photo by Liu Wei/gznsnews.com.cn]

The first production workshop of Nansha's freshwater fish breeding center officially started operating on May 8.

The center, covering a total area of around 8,000 mu (533 hectares), was built at an estimated cost of 1.18 billion yuan ($183.61 million). The center has begun breeding 40 million seedlings and its annual production is expected to reach 600 million.

Liu Shaojun, chief scientist of the breeding center, said that the center will strive to contribute to the development of the modern seed industry and become an integrated scientific innovation center. He also pointed out that two thirds of the total output of aquaculture products in the world come from China.

"Four new species of fingerlings are being bred at the center, all of which have many strengths, such as strong resistance to disease and fast growth," said Yang Huijun, chairman of Guangzhou Chengyi Aquatic Technology, one of the companies participating in the construction of the center. 

The center is a major project in Nansha's fishery industrial park, which is striving to become a national modern agricultural park for the aquatic seed industry. A total of 255 million yuan was invested into the construction of the park in 2020, 90 million yuan of which was social capital.