On August 30th, Sun Xiaoling, head of the Pacific white shrimp farming base in Xinning Town, Kaijiang County, Dazhou City, walked into the grow-out workshop to measure dissolved oxygen and water temperature, mentioning that the shrimp are scheduled for market release during the National Day holiday. Inside the tanks, aerators churned the water into splashes, where swarms of finger-length white shrimp swam around. Now in their rapid growth phase, they will exceed 15 centimeters in length by harvest time, with roughly 22 individuals making up a kilogram.

Pacific white shrimp, native to the Pacific coast of Central and South America, are a tropical species. Now, this “ocean delicacy” is successfully cultivated on land in Kaijiang County throughout the year. Sun, who previously gained farming experience in the Yangtze River Delta, is now in her third year of breeding back home and was among the earliest in the province to venture into white shrimp farming. “There are technical barriers, but we’ve thoroughly mastered them,” she said. Leading a reporter to an empty tank, she pointed at the ring-shaped pipelines installed along the bottom for oxygenation and aeration, saying, “These are all handmade, built with technology accumulated through our own experience.”

Creating a marine environment is the first challenge in land-based aquaculture. Sun explained that the base uses mountain spring water, maintains a weak alkaline water environment, and scientifically adds trace elements like minerals to simulate a marine ecosystem. Water temperature is another critical factor; after years of experimentation, she found that Pacific white shrimp thrive best at temperatures between 28°C and 30°C. If the temperature drops below 25°C or rises above 32°C, the shrimp experience stress and may even die. Despite the scorching sun outside, Sun spent barely five minutes in the grow-out workshop before sweat dripped from her forehead to her chin, yet she laughed and said, “This is exactly the temperature the shrimp love.” The facility requires underfloor heating to warm the water for seven months each year, incurring significant energy costs.

Oxygenation, aeration, and temperature control all depend on electricity. Outside the farming shed, oxygen tanks stand quietly as a backup for sudden power outages. Beyond the demanding water conditions, daily management is equally meticulous. In the hatchery’s feeding station, workers weigh feed pellets into a basin, explaining, “The daily feeding amount is precise to the gram, and it increases by 10% each day at this stage.” The feed is then poured into cone-shaped containers above the tanks, where intelligent pneumatic feeders dispense it automatically around the clock. This not only eliminates the need for nighttime manual feeding but also ensures that all 50,000 shrimp in each tank feed evenly. The station also holds an insulated box containing various “nutritional supplements” such as minerals, multivitamins, and immune boosters, because “shrimp also need a balanced diet.”

White shrimp are known for their thin shells, plump bodies, and delicious meat. The base’s three grow-out tanks can produce over 3,000 kilograms of shrimp, with farm-gate prices ranging from 56 to 60 yuan per kilogram, primarily supplying the Sichuan-Chongqing market. A new batch of shrimp fry is expected to move into the grow-out workshop in early September and reach market in November. Meanwhile, construction is underway on another grow-out workshop to expand the number of tanks from 10 to 20.

With consumption of white shrimp rising rapidly in inland regions, farmers in Renshi Town, Kaijiang County, are also eyeing this market. In late August, the Pacific white shrimp farming facility in Renshi Town was just starting to harvest its first batch of mature shrimp. As the net lifted, a school of grayish-white shrimp leapt from the water. “We’re still in the experimental phase with just 12 farming tanks, but we plan to build 78 tanks and produce six harvests per year, with a total output of over 200,000 kilograms,” said technician Gan Hongkuan.

Another overseas visitor has also taken root in Kaijiang. On the afternoon of August 25th, at the vast lotus pond in Baotaba Community, Pu'an Town, owner Yang Yongsheng hurriedly directed workers to scoop a basket of Australian red claw crayfish from the farming pond and quickly loaded them onto a truck bound for Chongqing to show samples to a potential partner. “It’s not quite the optimal harvesting period yet. Each crayfish now weighs about 65 grams, but they can grow to 100 grams, and the farm-gate price can reach 130 yuan per kilogram,” Yang said. He previously farmed in Guangzhou, but after the local market became saturated, he shifted his focus to the Sichuan-Chongqing region and eventually settled on Kaijiang. This is the first year Kaijiang County has farmed Australian red claw crayfish. In June, 20 million fry were released in batches into 3,800 mu of lotus ponds. Local authorities plan to build a second-phase base integrating farming, hatching, and research and development to achieve self-breeding of seedlings, turning these “overseas guests” into true “locals.”

Australian red claw crayfish are known for their large size and plump flesh. With these two overseas species settled in, Kaijiang’s aquaculture now offers off-season harvesting and year-round supply. As a major fishery county, Kaijiang has a characteristic aquaculture area of 73,900 mu. In recent years, it has successively developed crayfish, hairy crabs, and pearl mussels, generating an annual output value of about 713 million yuan. “Kaijiang Crayfish” and “Kaijiang Hairy Crabs” have been certified as national geographical indication products, and pearl production ranks first in the west of China. Efforts to enrich the “vegetable basket” continue. This year, Panshi Village in Huilong Town, Kaijiang County, revitalized idle fish ponds and introduced river rock carp farming using seedlings from outside the province. To meet the fish’s strict requirements for water quality and temperature, the village channeled mountain spring water and deepened the ponds to over 2 meters. “The 100 mu of river rock carp is expected to produce about 25,000 kilograms,” said Luo Denggang, Party branch secretary of Panshi Village.

From Pacific white shrimp to Australian red claw crayfish, from tropical shrimp to cold-water fish, these “overseas guests” in Kaijiang are making their debut in succession, keeping fresh flavors flowing all year round and placing more and more “Kaijiang flavor” on the dinner tables of consumers across the nation.