 Across the world, people eat fish to keep the body and mind healthy. Fresh fish, however, is highly perishable. To maintain its quality, fishermen and all fish dealers have to handle fish carefully, with the right equipment during the catch and transportation. The quality of fish deteriorates when fish is handled roughly, is not kept cool and there is a long time lapse between catching and processing. Remember, deterioration of fish starts as soon as it is caught. Good quality fish attracts a high price for fishermen, traders and processors, as the fish can be processed into good quality products. Florence Naboma is one of the many women who process and sell fish on the shores of Lake Victoria in Uganda. She knows why quality matters. The reason I buy the fish when it is nice is because I need to dry it, fry it and sell it with the right quality standard that we have. In this video, we shall learn how to maintain the quality of silver fish. While fishing, use pufferated jerrycans to hold and protect fish while you are still on the water. Pufferated jerrycans are particularly useful for small fish that are difficult to handle while unloading the boats. We use these jerrycans so that the silver fish doesn't rot and remains fresh all the time, because when you put the silver fish there, water drains out and the fish does not rot. If you pour the fish in the middle of the boat, the water from the boat will make it rot, but if you pour them into the jerrycans, they don't rot. Pufferated jerrycans are easy to make. Buy wide 20 litre jerrycans from a shop. Preferably, look for jerrycan sizes that are strong and of the same size. We began by testing all the blue jerrycans. When using the 10 litre jerrycans, being that they are weak, they shrink and compact the silver fish. Making it go bad. Whereas for these ones, when they are in position, they maintain their form even when they have been stacked on each other. Smaller jerrycans can be used if held together with nylon string or binding wire. Heat up a sharp knife so that it becomes red hot. Secure the jerrycan and cut out a wide rectangular hole that is 30 cm by 50 cm on one of the narrow sides of the jerrycan. The wide hole is used for putting the fish into the jerrycan as well as removing the fish after offloading the boats. On the opposite side, cut at least 10 small triangular holes about 5 cm apart. The reason why we use triangular holes is that when a silver fish comes, instead of going through, it settles. It cannot pass through that hole. They straighten themselves because the water drains out and the silver fish is able to reach the landing site while still fresh and the buyers take it at a good price. The small holes drain the water out of the jerrycan and also help improve air circulation. This prevents the jerrycans from getting hot inside. By using strong, perforated jerrycans, the fish will not be squashed under heavy weight. This avoids rapid spoilage and helps to keep the fish attractive. Use the perforated jerrycan as a container for the fish on each fishing trip. After pulling the net out of the water, place the fish in the perforated jerrycans. In case there is spoilage, it will only occur in particular containers and not the whole batch. Using the jerrycans reduces the risk of cross-contamination. I touch the fish and press to see if it is very firm. If it is nice and up to my standards, that one I buy. The ones that are rotten, softened the stomachs are not there. The good one is straight like this, that is how we know that fish. When you reach the shore, perforated jerrycans make it very easy to offload the fish. They make it easier to move the fish from the boat to the processing area due to their reasonable volume and weight. And because the same containers are used from the water, landing and finally two processing sites, you avoid contamination that may arise from using different containers with unknown cleanliness. As the fish does not need to be transferred to different containers, they are also not exposed to dirt. Clean the jerrycans after every fishing trip to avoid contamination of fish in the next fishing trip. After offloading the fish, scrub the perforated jerrycans thoroughly and rinse them with clean water. Put them out to dry in the sun. So what have we learned? Deutoriation of fish starts shortly after capture. To minimize contamination and physical damage to the fish, use perforated jerrycans to hold and protect the fish while they are still on the boat and when offloading. Use strong 20-liter jerrycans. Cut out a wide rectangular hole that is 30 cm by 50 cm on one of the narrow sides of the jerrycan. Make at least 10 small triangular holes of about 5 cm apart on the opposite side. After pulling the net out of the water, place the fish in the perforated jerrycans. On landing, lift the jerrycans to remove them from the boat and remember to use the same jerrycan to carry the fresh fish to the processing area. Clean the perforated jerrycans after each fishing trip to avoid contamination to the next batch of fish. Get more money from your fish and avoid spoilage. Use perforated jerrycans to maintain the quality of your fish.