Scarcity pushes prices of Mukene through the roof

Prices of silverfish, commonly known as Mukene, have  increased months after the government banned the ‘hurry up’ fishing method, traders have said.

In this method, fishermen use big fishnets that cover a large surface area and harvest almost everything within reach.

Since February when the Sate Minister for Fisheries, Ms Hellen Adoa Abeku, announced the ban on ‘hurry up’ fishing method in a bid to save immature Nile Perch and other fish species, prices of silverfish have more than doubled in Soroti and Jinja districts. 

Dealers attribute the price hike to the decline in catches of  silverfish.

The price of a  basinful of silverfish has increased from between Shs45,000 and Shs50,000 to between Shs120,000 and Shs150,000 at the landing sites around Lake Victoria in Jinja and Lake Kyoga in Serere District. 

In Soroti City, a cup of silverfish which used to cost Shs1,000 is now at Shs3,000 while those sold in a one kilogramme container cost between Shs12,000  and Shs13,000 up from between  Shs6,0000 and Shs7,000.

Ms Hellen Alupo, a vendor at Soroti Main Market, said she was hardly making any profit. 

“Omena is eaten by mostly poor people because they can not afford meat and other fish like Tilapia and Nile Perch that cost more than Shs7,000. Since February,  supplies of omena have reduced while its prices have increased,” Ms Alupo said.
 
Another vendor, Ms Harriet Tino, called upon the government to lift the ban and allow the fishermen to use better methods to improve the supply.
 
However, minister Adoa said the ban was imposed to control illicit fishing practices and protect immature fish.

“This ‘hurry up’ method destroys the lake and immature Nile perch and today after a longtime use of hurry up methods, there are now low catches of silverfish in Lake Victoria dropping up to only 3 percent of the total production,” Ms Adoa said.

She explained that Uganda currently catches a total of 560 tonnes of fish and Lake Albert is the leading producer of fish sold per year.

She urged the public to use scoop-net fishing method to catch silverfish.

Locals speak out
Ms Jane Aguti, a restaurant operator in pioneer ward, Soroti City East,  said she is not making any profit from selling silverfish meals , which are on high demand by frequent customers.  

Ms Aguti said she  was contemplating how to reduce her costs of operation because she might start making losses if the prices of silverfish remain high.

Ms Bintra Moda Kamida, a mother of four and resident of Soroti City, said she stopped buying silverfish a month ago because of the soaring prices. 

She now depends on vegetables grown in her gardens or buys them once in a while from the market since they are cheaper than silverfish.

Ms  Kanida, however, told Monitor on April 22 that her children might suffer from malnutrition if she does not find cheaper but healthy food items.

Health benefits of eating silverfish
According to nutritionists, silverfish helps  in building body muscles and development of children since its bones contain calcium.
 
In 2017, Dr Edwin Agaba,a nutritionist, told  Monitor that unlike Tilapia and Nile Perch, silverfish is packed with amino acids that boost body immunity. 

He added that silverfish is also a source of omega-3 fatty acids that help the heart to function well.
  
It also contains vitamins A and E that help in  maintaining healthy eye tissues and smooth skin in human beings.