Comments on: Pre-Departure Area for Lapu-Lapu’s

By: oliver

oliver — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 07:45:01 +0000

We sell/ supply natural wild live grouper fry. wholesale price, please contact phone 09102115116. Email; myguxi@yahoo.com / we sell also eel fry

By: JM

JM — Thu, 11 Nov 2010 03:31:53 +0000

On the other hand, beacuse of these exporters, Philippines has been (at least in their respective market) one of the leading exporters of Lapu-lapu in Asia. Isn’t it nice that in this instance, we are not THE importer but rather we are the exporter? And since the most expensive size is the large size, that means fishermen will most likely want to catch the large sized ones. Lower than that won’t do good for them, so they better save the small fishes to grow. Just a thought! There are still lil lapu lapus still swimming in Philippine oceans. But I agree that cyanide fishing disrupts marine ecosystem and i hope the fishermen use nets to catch these fishes. If the gov continues private live fishing, they better think of a natural way to stun these fishes and educate fishermen or marine export will decline. In that way everyone will be happy, including mother nature.

And for those who abhor the idea of live fishing (be it catching by net) most likely when you buy lapu lapu in markets in manila, you are probably buying the “live for export” lapu lapu who died while being transported to Manila.

By: suzanne erandio

suzanne erandio — Sun, 29 Aug 2010 07:52:11 +0000

wow,, i like lapu lapu so much!!! the fisherman or ''tindero'' is not afraid to touch that fish

By: meh

meh — Sat, 01 May 2010 00:49:11 +0000

grace – lapu-lapu can be ‘farmed’ in the sense that immature/smaller lapu-lapu can be raised in ponds. however the baby fish (fingerlings) are still caught from the wild. same is true for most of the bangus available in the Philippines. since the fishery is still based on baby fish from the wild, given the volume that’s harvested it is not really sustainable. bow.

By: grace

grace — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 08:49:10 +0000

Lapu-lapu are raised in fish pens in a natural small bay area in Mandaue City. They are easily caught by nets and there is no need for cyanide. How can you get sustainable and large numbers of Lapu-lapu is reliable numbers for export market if these were caught in the wild? These are farmed fish, raised in natural waters not inside tanks. Also catching fish using nets, or hook and line will injure the fish and they die . Live fish must be gently handled, must have no injuries like around the mouth, and must have all their scales intact. When they reach other countries they still look nice.

By: renee

renee — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 21:29:16 +0000

you are so witty marketman. i love ur blog so much; its so engaging and entertaining as well

By: Richard

Richard — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 11:00:33 +0000

One of the very common methods of harvesting lapu-lapu and other reef fishes is liba-liba fishing. It’s much more profitable than individuals spraying cyanide.
You have a boat (or two) with a large (200m long) gill net, fronting the reef. Then you literally scare the fish out of the reef and into the gill net, using one upper rope with streamers, and another lower one with rocks.
You can tell these boats because they have long booms on either side, making them look like waterbugs. And they’re very common.
https://www.coconutstudio.com/Fishing%20Methods%202%20-%20Nets.htm

By: mm

mm — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 15:37:30 +0000

fast facts:
1. there are 2000 plus holding cages for red lapulapu (locally called “suno”) in northern palawan alone. these cages proliferated simply because the local fishers have to rear their suno first before they can be sold in marketable and more pricey sizes. point is: most of the suno caught from the wild now are undersized, depriving the species of the chance to reproduce first. especially since female “suno” converts into male species upon reaching more than one a kg body weight, which is also the dest and most pricey size in the market.

2. there are more than 3,000 suno fishers/cagers in northern palawan, most of them marginal fishermen.

3. regulations on suno trade are still hazy at the moment, meanwhile, the demand is growing.

By: michelle keh

michelle keh — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 06:51:16 +0000

I hope that these fish aren’t harvested using cyanide. It’s just isn’t healthy for everyone, the corals, the consumers, and even the fishermen who rely on the bounty of the ocean. Sigh. Believe it or not, even in the coastline of Ilocos Sur, we can hear booming sounds on the seashore. As it turned out, there were fishermen using dynamite fishing. Ironically, we were with a top local official at the time. Can you say gross negligence?!?!

By: Ben@thegoldcoast

Ben@thegoldcoast — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 03:10:42 +0000

I agree with the previous comments that this post really makes you feel sad. In addition to that, I feel disturbed and infuriated by the lack of will power from the government agencies who are suppose to monitor these. Also, I can’t help but get pissed at those exporters (& local fisherfolks) who still use cyanide (I’m sure karma will catch up to them soon). Though I’m proud of RP’s seascapes, I just have to pin my hopes on the Great Barrier Reef, seeing how much people here are so adamant at taking care of it. Hopefully, a time when Philippine reefs are all dead wastelands is just a fragment of our imagination……