Farming on the beach: How clams spring to life in northern Vietnam

By Giang Huy   September 15, 2017 | 07:32 pm PT
Covered in mud and turbid water, Dong Chau Beach in Thai Binh Province is no place for a fancy vacation.
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Clam farms on Dong Chau Beach in Tien Hai District during high tide. The tide dictates the times farmers work because they can only harvest the clams at low tide.

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Although it's not textbook beach vacation with smooth sand and turquoise water, this part of Dong Chau Beach still makes for quite a scene with its clam farms.

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Clam farmers on Dong Chau Beach usually go to work in the early morning and late afternoon to escape the scorching sun.

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A woman picks clams.

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People with bigger farms do not harvest clams the old way by hand. Instead they lay a big net deep under the mud and spray off the sand when the clams are ready to harvest.

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The clams magically appear out of the mud.

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Then all farmers need to do is drag out the net filled with clams.

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It takes 15 months for the clams to grow and be ready for harvest. On average, 10 tons of clam seeds will produce 50 tons of full-grown clams.

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These farmers get VND300,000 ($13) each day for harvesting clams.

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Clams are sold for VND9,000 per kilo to vendors.

 
 
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