Little could people in Ho Chi Minh City imagine they would be one day able to buy sturgeon, a pricey fish species known for both of its delicious flesh and eggs, right on the sidewalks.

Makeshift stalls, selling what were advertised as sturgeon raised in Lam Dong, a Central Highlands province recently hit by prolonged downpours, began to be erected on Truong Chinh Street in Tan Binh District in the southern metropolis earlier this week.

According to the banners put around them, these selling points are calling on people to help consume the sturgeon supply from flooded areas in Lam Dong.

Crowds of people were spotted stopping by the sidewalks to buy the fish, apparently thanks to its attractive prices - around VND100,000 (US$4.3) per kg, compared to the market rates of VND300,000-350,000 ($12.9-15.05) per kg.

Sellers said such affordable prices for sturgeon, considered a ‘luxury’ food in Vietnam, had indeed helped attract a large number of buyers.

Each vendor managed to sell hundreds of kilograms a day and have their stocks constantly refilled.

According to a seller, the sturgeon is sourced from a large sturgeon-farming company in Lam Dong, whose farms were heavily damaged by torrential downpours that flooded many locations throughout the province last week.

The company had to resort to selling off their products to traders to recoup investment. The traders then took the fish to Ho Chi Minh City for sale.

Sturgeon are used for food and their eggs are also eaten as caviar.

In Vietnam, sturgeon are being raised in cold-water fish farms in Lam Dong and northern mountainous provinces such as Lao Cai thanks to the favorable weather conditions there, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

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