Negombo Badu Number Top — Guide to the Market and Top Picks

Negombo’s Badu (fish) market is one of Sri Lanka’s busiest coastal seafood hubs, famed for its early-morning auctions, variety of fresh catch, and lively trading culture. This article explains how the market works, highlights the most sought-after fish (“top” or high-value species), offers practical tips for buyers, and notes seasonal and sustainability considerations.

• Draft a short mock bulletin showing how a Negombo market might report daily "badu numbers (top/bottom)."
• Create a checklist for fishers/traders to track and act on top-price signals.

The Numbering System

Step 1 – Handle Missing & Outliers

# Example: cap outliers in top_number at 99th percentile
cap = df['top_number'].quantile(0.99)
df['top_number_capped'] = np.where(df['top_number'] > cap, cap, df['top_number'])