BFAR provides bangus fry, fishing gear to Pangasinan fish farmers

BINMALEY, Pangasinan, Philippines — The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources in Region 1 (BFAR-1) distributed on Saturday, June 6, milkfish (bangus) and siganid fry, as well as fishing equipment, to the Samahan ng Magbabangus ng Pangasinan (SAMAPA) during the group’s second anniversary celebration.

The assistance package included 80,000 bangus fry and 1,000 siganid fry produced at BFAR’s Regional Mariculture Technology Demonstration Center in Alaminos City, where the agency operates hatcheries for various fish commodities.

Earlier, BFAR provided SAMAPA with 25,000 bangus fry, which the organization raised into fingerlings for two months. These fingerlings were distributed on Saturday to selected members of the association.

For fish farmer Restituto Reyes, 64, the assistance is a welcome boost, especially for growers affected by weather-related losses.

READ: Erratic weather harmful to Pangasinan ‘bangus’

The fingerlings, he said, would help fish farmers recover from calamities such as sudden rains that trigger “gataw,” a local term for a phenomenon in which abrupt rainfall during hot weather causes stress among fish and may result in fish kills if not immediately addressed.

“We have been affected by different calamities, including the several typhoons that struck last year,” Reyes said.

Aside from the fry and fingerlings, BFAR also turned over two marine engines, 30 banyeras (tubs), and four cooler boxes to SAMAPA.

BFAR Regional Director Remely Lachica assured the group of the agency’s continued support.

“BFAR will always be ready to assist SAMAPA because everything we do is for food security and better lives for our fisherfolk,” Lachica said.

“Let us continue working hand in hand to grow our fisheries sector and uplift every fisherman in Pangasinan,” she added. /atm