Lianjiang in SE China's Fujian boosts abalone production with seasonal migration

An abalone farm in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (People's Daily Online/Ye Qingqing)

Wu Yongshou starts his annual abalone migration in late April, trucking thousands of prized shellfish from his farm in southeast China's Fujian Province to cooler waters in east China's Shandong Province. The two-month relocation effort protects his livestock from the punishing heat that follows.

"Starting in April or May, as the weather warms, the water here becomes too hot for abalone," said Wu, who operates an abalone farm off the coast of Houwan village in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city.

Abalones in a cage in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (People's Daily Online/Ye Qingqing)

"On top of that, spring brings red tides and summer brings typhoons, making survival difficult and causing high mortality," Wu said. "That's why we move the abalone north, bringing them back in October when the northern waters turn cold."

More than 20 years ago, Wu observed how abalone struggled through Shandong's harsh winters, barely growing and suffering high mortality rates. He impulsively packed some shellfish into foam boxes and transported them south to Lianjiang. The results exceeded his expectations.

As Wu's Lianjiang farm expanded over the following years, he faced a new challenge: summer heat was killing his abalone. The solution became clear: shuttle the shellfish between regions, letting them spend winter in the south and escape the summer heat in the north.

A worker lifts an abalone cage out of the water at an abalone farm in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (People's Daily Online/Ye Qingqing)

In the first trial, he took a batch north using a live seafood transport truck, and the abalones achieved a survival rate of over 80 percent, a remarkable improvement over keeping them locally.

As his operation expanded beyond trucking capacity, Wu partnered with a shipping company to build two specialized vessels for the northern abalone trade.

Wu's approach has gained widespread adoption. More than 300 households in Lianjiang now follow the method, accounting for nearly 30 percent of the county's abalone production. Compared with traditional practices, it is expected to boost profits by nearly 100 million yuan ($14 million). This year alone, farmers shipped 20,000 tonnes of abalone north, expecting a 30,000-tonne harvest by October.

Lianjiang's combination of favorable natural conditions and cutting-edge farming methods generated 30.2 billion yuan in fisheries output in 2024, maintaining its five-year streak as China's top-producing county. The region produced 59,300 tonnes of abalone, about one-third of national output.

Fish farms in Lianjiang county, Fuzhou city, southeast China's Fujian Province. (People's Daily Online/Ye Qingqing)