By Bashariah Zainuddin
KOTA BHARU: At several river estuaries in Kelantan, especially Sungai Pulau Panjang, Sungai Lebuh Jambu, Sungai Che Derih and Pak Amat, oysters provide a source of income for local residents, with some of them breeding the oysters on their own by sinking unused tyres in the rivers.
This Bernama reporter went to some of the river estuaries, including in Pengkalan Chepa, and saw a number of people looking for oysters.
Most of them are in groups, comprising parents and their children, with plastic basins tied to either their waist or arm and armed with pointed object or tongs for use to retrieve the oysters from the riverbed.
For safety reason, they wore two layers of stocking and also gloves to avoid cuts when retrieving the oysters.
Roslina Zakaria, 42, who was among the groups of people looking for oysters at Sungai Che Derih, said her family had been collecting oysters for income over the past 30 years and that she and her 12 siblings were raised and schooled by their parents from income earned by selling oyster meat.
“I, myself have been looking for oysters for more than 20 years, and during my school days, it was to help my parents. Now, my husband and I collect oysters as our source of income to raise our seven children,” she added.
Roslina said with the help of her husband and two daughters, the family was able to collect about 20 kg of oyster meat daily and sell them for up to RM18 per kg.
She said their customers included middlemen and restaurant operators.
Meanwhile, Najihah Daud, 37, who was met while busy retrieving the oyster meat from its shell, said that she and her 12 siblings were also brought up by their parents from income earned by selling oyster meat.
She said her husband, Mohd Azmi Ghani, 38, accompanied her to collect the oysters and they were able to collect about 10 kg of oyster meat daily which they sold to middlemen.
Mohd Azmi said the oysters would be left to soak in the river for two days to remove the saltwater before the oyster meat could be retrieved.
By doing so, the oyster meat will be bigger, he added.
“For those with high-blood and gout, it is advisable that they squeeze the juice of 20 calamondins on the oyster meat if they want to eat it raw,” he said.
Collecting oysters also provides a mean for the youngsters to earn their own pocket-money, including a 16-year-old girl who wanted to be known only as Rahmah, who go to the river near her house almost every day after school to collect oysters.
“I use the money I get from selling oyster meat to buy revision books as part of my preparation for Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examination next year,” she added. – Bernama
