Due to the establishment of fishery management organization in Chaohu Lake, fishery resources have been protected, and the output of whitebait in Chaohu Lake has increased greatly. Since 1982, the annual output has reached over 500,000 Jin, which is 1.5 times higher than 1978. Whitebait can be exported to foreign trade in exchange for foreign exchange to support the four modernizations of the motherland. There are two kinds of export: frozen whitebait and dried whitebait, and the quality requirements are very strict. The annual export volume of whitebait in Chaohu Lake reaches 654.38+100000 Jin to 654.38+105000 Jin, which is exported to Hong Kong, Macao, Southeast Asia and Japan.

With the change of environment and climate and malicious fishing, whitebait in Chaohu Lake is decreasing at an alarming rate and is on the verge of extinction. Since 1983, Chaohu Lake has taken the lead in closing the lake to fishing for one and a half years. Through artificial fish nests, artificial release and other measures, the fishery resources in Chaohu Lake have been enduring for more than 20 years (the natural proliferation of fishery resources in Chaohu Lake has always been the first), but the annual output of whitebait in Chaohu Lake has dropped sharply at an alarming rate, from 600 tons in 2005 to 300 tons in 2007. Due to the decline of whitebait production, whitebait in Chaohu Lake has become a rare "treasure". Whitebait is rarely seen in major markets in Chaohu Lake, and it is even more difficult to see the public dining table.