Roadside Shrimp Farm in Udon Thani
Travelling along the Udon Thani to Nong Khai highway Wonderful Wi slowed our car and pulled to a stop next to a roadside standalone shop of some sorts. It turned out to be a small shrimp farm and one Wilai had obviously used in the past. It was my first call there and I was fascinated by it all.
A Thai Shrimp Farm – Simplicity and Shrimps
A simple set-up. Three small tarpaulin-lined ponds with water pumps and filters. Ice boxes, baskets, fishing nets, a few dozen bricks, weight scales and a small office/cubbyhole. Probably some bureaucratic red tape too.
Self service. Fill a basket. Weigh and pay. Fresh or frozen – 330 baht a kilogram. No receipt or best before rules applied. No disposable latex gloves supplied either. Some of these small food type one man band business operations are too easy-going on hygiene but in this case the ice box does offer some assurance.
Not the most attractive buggers are they. Though well chilled and highly desirable from an edible point of view. Big barbecue favourites anytime of the year.
The pond pump circulates the water and limits bacteria growth as well as eliminating stagnant water. The result is healthy shrimps although they may have major complaints about their life span. Their popularity doesn’t aid a long life. In the food chain good taste and longevity are very distance-spaced words.
A straight forward and uncomplicated set-up but a fascinating one to eagle-eye. Sometimes it’s good to know how the food sat in your spoon or clamped between chopsticks (very precariously in my experience) got there. The shrimp farm opened my eyes on that one.
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