Fishermen in Wangjiangjing town, Xiuzhou district, Jiaxing, harvest black carp. [Photo/jiaxingren.com]

Early on the morning of Dec 26, in Wangjiangjing town, located in the Xiuzhou district of Jiaxing, fishermen broke through the surface and cast their nets into icy fish ponds, signaling the beginning of the carp-catching season. Within a mere two hours, more than 20,000 kilograms of black carp had been caught.

Following this year's Winter Solstice, which occurred on Dec 22, Jiaxing natives commenced preparations for the Spring Festival, for which dried black carp is indispensable.

At this time every year, Wangjiangjing town, known as the "home of black carp in China", initiates the centralized fishing of black carp. The town boasts a vast black carp breeding area of more than 10,000 mu (667 hectares), yielding more than 1,500 kg per mu. Approximately 70 percent of the freshly caught fish will enter aquatic product wholesale markets in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. The remainder will either be processed into dried black carp or sold directly at retail.