World Food Policy
Figure 5. The Area and Production of Freshwater Aquaculture
in Hai Duong Province (1997–2014)
Source: Hai Duong Statistical Book, 1999, 2005, 2014.
from 1997 to 2005, while only 38% of
total households established their fish
cultures during the period 1980–1996
(Table 4).
the last decades. It changed not only in
the structure of the food it produces,
but also in its production systems, espe-
cially for the freshwater production sys-
tems. The total production of fish in Hai
Duong rose from 9,963 tons to 64,887
tons from 1997 to 2014. There was also
a significant increase of aquaculture
in the area, from 5,660 (ha) to 10,064
(ha) during the period 1997–2005. The
turning point of aquaculture expan-
sion was in 2005 when the Vietnamese
government set up a program of food
security which prioritized a large area
of agricultural lands to maintain rice
production (3 million ha) in order to
ensure the national food security pro-
gram. This has clearly impacted the
aquaculture expansion in the province.
As it was, 70 households (46%) out of
the total (151) investigated households
started their fish cultures in the period
The essential characteristic of
IAA systems is the flow of nutrients be-
tween enterprises, i.e. wastes from one
enterprise become inputs to another
in order to increase production. These
wastes do not flow exclusively to the
pond, but from the pond to other en-
terprises (in the form of pond mud and
nutrient-rich water) such as in vegeta-
ble production around the pond. Some
of these new enterprises and flows may
only have been feasible through the
introduction of the pond. Increased
enterprise diversity provides opportu-
nities for more nutrient linkages, and
a possibility to meet increased nutrient
requirements for enhanced production,
46