Ningde serves up its golden fish on the national menu

More than 100 dishes featuring one fish — steamed, braised, grilled, sliced and turned into ready-to-eat specialties — are being showcased as Ningde seeks to bring its signature large yellow croaker to more dining tables across China and abroad.

The "whole large yellow croaker feast" is the latest effort by the city in Fujian province to promote the fish not only as a local delicacy, but as a nationally recognized food brand.

The fish has long been part of life along the coast of northeastern Fujian. Guanjingyang, a sheltered inner bay of Sandu Bay, has traditionally served as an important spawning ground for large yellow croaker. But decades of intensive fishing severely depleted wild stocks, and by the 1980s, the once-abundant fish had become increasingly difficult to find.

The turning point came when local researchers began working on artificial breeding. After years of efforts to cultivate broodstock, induce spawning and improve fry survival rates, Ningde achieved large-scale artificial breeding in 1990.

By 2025, Ningde produced 222,400 metric tons of large yellow croaker, accounting for about 80 percent of the national total, according to the Ningde oceanography and fisheries bureau. The city has also developed a full industrial chain covering breeding, farming, processing, distribution and exports.

But the industry is now entering a new phase focused on producing better fish, rather than simply more of them.

Since 2018, Ningde has upgraded traditional farming facilities and expanded into deeper waters and more open sea areas. The city has also introduced stricter grading and quality standards, including a five-tier system for high-quality large yellow croaker.

"We are shifting from winning through volume to winning through quality," said You Chengyin, deputy head of the bureau.

That shift is being felt in the market too. Chen Yubin, chairman of Fujian Hanteng Fishery Co, said his company's sales have grown by about 30 to 50 percent annually since 2021, as more consumers become familiar with the fish.

Hanteng now supplies supermarket and fresh-food chains, traditional markets and hotel groups across China, with East China as its biggest market. About 70 percent of its sales are chilled fish, Chen says, since transporting live fish over long distances involves higher costs and greater losses.

The fish is also reaching overseas markets, with Ningde's products now exported to more than 60 countries and regions. Culinary tasting events are being staged in major cities, while new products are being developed to broaden the fish's appeal, You added.