>> Help for farmers protecting livestock from cold weather
>> Extreme cold kills precious buffaloes in Sapa
As of late January 17, roughly 10,000 buffaloes and cows in northern mountainous provinces of Vietnam dropped dead from the prolonged cold.
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| Meat from livestock casualties sold on the cheap |
Hoang Kim Giao, Head of the Animal Husbandry Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), said Cao Bang Province witnessed the biggest loss of 1,996, followed by Lang Son at 1,930 and Lao Cai with 1,420.
The prime minister has instructed the department to give each family VND2 million (USD100) to help replace their animals.
The severe cold weather is expected to last until the Lunar New Year, the department warned. Localities have been urged to make the necessary preparations to protect cattle.
Hoa Binh, Lang Son, Cao Bang and Son La provinces are facing continuing cold weather, some places seeing temperatures of 3-5 degrees Celsius.
There are also reports of fish dying in Lang Son province. Dinh Van Ha, owner of a fish farm in Lang Son City, said that despite measures against the cold, he collected more than 500kg of dead fish a day, on January 15 and 16. He was forced to barter for the best price he could get for these fish, just VND7,000 (USD0.35) and VND8,000 (USD0.4) per kilogramme. The weather has killed up to 80% to 90% of fish at some households.
Vo Nhat Duy, Director of Son La Rubber Company, said up to 1,400 out of his firm\'s total 5,400 ha, are being threatened by cold.
