Just off Molocaboc Island, beneath a turquoise canopy of water, fishers search the coral reef to pick out abalone and sea cucumber, two prized delicacies in Asian cuisine. Live abalone sells abroad for up to USD120 or approximately PHP5,700 a kilo, and dried sea cucumber, USD2000 or about PHP96,000 a kilo. But the fishers are not here to cash in on the abalone grazing on coralline substrates and the sea cucumber burrowing in the white sand. Not yet. They carefully weigh and size them, log the numbers in a notebook, and return them to the reef to continue to grow and reproduce. During the formative years of the sea ranching project, the fisherfolks asked when they will benefit from the rehabilitation of the overfished abalone, sea cucumber, and seahorse population. Answering their questions was Dr. Nerissa Salayo, a socioeconomist of the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center Aquaculture Department (SEAFDEC/AQD).

Pagador, J. R., & Dianala, R. D. (2021, January 30 - 31). Community-based sea ranching: fisherfolks’ legacy to sustainable fisheries. Daily Guardian, pp. 2, 11.