Kim Yong Sam1
I. Introduction
Coastal seafarming in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) started towards the end of 1980 mainly concentrating on seaweed culture while floating netcage started only in 1980.
Seawater temperature in DPRK ranges from 4–5 °C (during winter months) and increase to about 24–25 °C during summer months.
Tidal ranges are 2–3 m (max 3–4 m) in the summer period and between 1.5–2m in winter. Ice blocks from the northern sea often float towards the coast of DPRK. As a result, it is impossible to culture fish by floating netcages all year round. Therefore, fish have been cultured in spring and in autumn when wave action is considerably reduced.
The main finfish species cultured in floating netcages in DPRK is the rainbow trout. Rainbow trout are acclimatized to seawater for 5 to 7 days, and grows to 350–450 g within 80 to 90 days in floating netcages. Harvesting is carried out in spring and winter. Artificial feed is supplied two or three times a day at a level of 7–10 % of total fish weight in the floating netcage.
By attending the finfish netcage culture course in Singapore we have gained a valuable experience which we hope to put into practice in DPRK and further develop our finfish netcage culture industry.
1 Aquaculture Department, Fisheries Committee, Pyongyang, DPRK.
