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Silver fish scarcity worsens during moonlight period
Silver fish, also known as mukene, is small in nature. According to Mr Erick Audux, a fish monger at Ggaba market, people love this kind of fish so much that you can sell three bags of silver fish a day. He says, “People buy it for different reasons but mostly for their children. There are also many heads of schools who buy it for their students.” Silver fish is known for its nutritional value - proteins and - is said to reduce on the chances of getting heart disease. On a bad day, Mr Audux, says he sells one bag of mukene.
The price for the silver fish has increased ever since the beginning of this month. He says a sack that cost between Shs130,000 and Shs150,000 now costs Shs180,000.
He says prices have gone up because of scarcity due to moonlight. “Whenever it’s the month of the moon, we don’t get a lot of mukene. Unlike other types of fish, mukene and light don’t mix so, it’s not until the moon is gone that we will get enough of it,” he says and adds that when mukene is in plenty, the prices usually drop.
According to Ms Salama Nambatya in Kibuli market, a lot of winds can also contribute to scarcity of mukene. Mr Audux adds that the poor methods used to fish could also be the contributing factor to mukene’s scarcity. He says, “Sometimes the nets used are not up to standard and at times they catch unmature mukene (they don’t give it time to grow). Also some of the fishermen want to use light to get the fish yet they know it can’t work.”
If not dried well, mukene can rot. Mr Audux and Ms Nambatya say it can be kept in a sack to allow fresh air so that it doesn’t go mould. They also advise that the sacks should not be kept in a way that they sit directly on the ground to avoid insects from eating them.
Mukene fish is got from Lake Victoria, Kyoga, Nabugabo and Victoria Nile. Both traders say that they can’t say the market for silver fish is good or bad because it depends on the area of operation and if the people there know its importance.
At Kibuli market a kilogramme of silver fish goes for Shs4,000. The same amount of silver fish costs Shs3,000 at Ggaba Market and Shs3,500 at Owino market. A sack of silver fish costs Shs180,000 at all the markets on whole sale.
