Oysters and crabs farmed in saline-alkali ponds in Xinjiang

Oysters and crabs are now being farmed in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, thousands of kilometers from the sea, creating new jobs and income for locals.

An oyster trial launched in late May in Xinkailing township, Aral city, covers about 3.3 hectares, with total output expected to reach about three metric tons. All the oysters are sold fresh in local markets at affordable prices and have been well received by customers.

"The oysters in Xinjiang grow faster than those in our coastal hometown over the same period, and they taste even better," said Chen Wuqun, general manager of the aquaculture company behind the project.

The project grew out of investment promotion under Zhejiang province's paired assistance to Xinjiang, which aims to put the region's unused brackish water and saline-alkali land to productive use.

Chen has more than 20 years of experience in aquaculture. In June 2024, he set up a 6.7-hectare pilot pond, which showed that seafood species could survive local conditions. By the end of that year, the operation had expanded to 26.7 hectares. It now covers 93.3 hectares and farms multiple varieties of seafood.