Looking to develop direct sales to consumers

Pelicanul Distribution is active in widely different areas. Originally an architectural design and construction company, it diversified into the farming of common carp and other freshwater fish species about a decade ago. More recently it has acquired a trout farm dating back to the seventies where it is growing rainbow trout and brown trout.

Located in Oestil Ungureni, slightly south of the geographical centre of Romania, the trout farm draws its water from a lake in the surrounding mountains. e water supplies rst a hydroelectric dam and then continues downstream through a channel from where it feeds the farm. As a result, the water is unaffected by weather conditions and does not collect silt or debris or become turbid as it would if it was drawn from a river. At the farm, George Ionescu, the owner of Pelicanul Distribution, grows rainbow trout and a native species of trout, the brown trout. e latter is produced mainly for restocking natural waters with only a small part of the production intended for consumption. Being a wild sh that has not been farmed for generations and in large quantities like rainbow trout, it is more di cult to breed.

A farm with a long history

e facilities are much the same as they were 45 years ago. When Mr Ionescu took over in 2021, the site had been lying idle for 30 years under the national forest administration. Under the previous regime the farm was used mainly to repopulate natural waters with trout, but this changed after it came under the purview of the forest administration in the 90s. Since cultivating sh was not a focus area for the forest administration, the site was largely ignored. In 2021 the new owner discovered that the basic infrastructure, the water supply, the ponds, and the buildings including a hatchery, was old but serviceable. Mr Ionescu attributes the farm to Poul Decei (1926-2003), a renowned Romanian specialist who created a network of farms to restock mountain waters, dams, and lakes with salmonids. His work was in response to destruction caused by logging operations in the 50s and 60s in the mountains. e rivers were used to oat logs downstream which was highly damaging to natural habitats and the aquatic life that populated them.

At the farm, water from the channel is rst directed to a pond where it stays for some time to allow any debris to settle to the bottom. is process both cleans the water and allows its temperature to increase by a couple of degrees which makes it more suitable for use in the hatchery and for the ngerlings. Before entering the hatchery the water goes through a simple but ecient ltering process involving layers of gravel of di erent sizes followed by layers of sand. is system was put in place when the farm was built and can still be used 45 years later. e only substantial change we made when we moved in, says Mr Ionescu, was to replace some of the piping leading from the channel to the farm, an investment of some EUR100,000. e farm’s theoretical capacity is 250300 tonnes, while current production is about 100 tonnes. e water temperature is generally favourable for breeding trout as it does not get hot in summer. I have not experienced 14 degrees C here, says Mr Ionescu, compared to other areas where it can go up to 22 degrees and more. On the other hand, the low temperature means the sh do not grow as fast. Slow growth, however, is re ected in the texture of the esh, which is better than when the sh grows rapidly. It is like high quality wood, Mr Ionescu points out, the longer it takes to grow the better the structure and strength.

Breeding procedure follows time-tested methods

When the eggs hatch the larvae are grown in tanks in the hatchery before being moved to the nursery where they reach e water supply to the farm amounts to about 250 litres/second. e water is circulated through the farm before being channelled to a slow moving 1 km long stream where any impurities are allowed to settle or are absorbed by the vegetation growing in the water and along the banks. e out owing water is tested regularly by the company and the authorities arrive unannounced can also take samples. However, the stocking density on the farm is under 6 kg/cubic m (2080 kg/cubic m is more common on trout farms) so the level of pollution is very low and the water that leaves the farm does not have to be specially treated in any way. Mr Ionescu’s priorities when he took over the site were rst to secure a reliable supply of clean water and then to clean up the ponds. Now that is done and production has started he intends to look for support from EU funds that will enable him to renovate and modernise the facility. is will include investing in aerators, repairing ponds that need it, and putting modern incubation systems in the hatchery. e total could be anything between EUR600,000 and 1 million of which 60 will be reimbursed by the fund.

1.5 to 2 g. Before they reach this size, it is inadvisable to place them in outdoor ponds as they cannot tolerate direct sunlight. At about 2 g the sh are moved to the on-growing ponds. e process followed is essentially the same as was done back in time when the farm was rst built. At that time experiments were also carried out on breeding the Danube salmon (Hucho hucho). It was thought that circular ponds were better than rectangular bonds for this purpose and so a couple of circular ponds were built and populated with Danube salmon broodstock imported from the Republic of Moldova. e experiments were not successful, however, for various reasons.

Developing a closer relationship with the end consumer

e rainbow trout and brown trout grow at radically di erent rates. Using specially selected individuals a rainbow trout can grow to 8 kg in 2.5-3 years while the brown trout only reaches 2 kg. We have created a market for these large sh in Romania, says Mr Ionescu.

e kilo price is a fraction of that of salmon although the product is fresher and the fat content is lower.

e frozen llet is priced at EUR18/ kg on the supermarket shelf, while for salmon it may be EUR30/kg. Mr Ionescu is keen to deepen the relationship between producer and end consumer. In his view if the consumer places an order directly with a producer, the exact amount of sh ordered can be prepared and delivered. ere will be no waste and the consumer gets exactly what he wants. For a supermarket this is more di cult as it must balance what it orders from a supplier with the estimated demand from consumers. Inevitably this leads to waste, and with a highly perishable product like sh the waste tends to be signi cant. e price a supermarket charges the consumer re ects this waste. He feels consumers need to be educated to sacri ce some of the spontaneity of going to a supermarket and getting whatever is available. Instead, by planning more in advance the consumer can eliminate the waste and get a very fresh product. He foresees the use of technology to place the order, package the product, and deliver it rapidly as the way to building a closer association with the end consumer.

Pelicanul Distribution is a member of a cooperative that includes ve or six farms. As a cooperative recognised by the EU at least 50 of the combined production of all the members must be sold to the cooperative which then sells it further. Projects designed for the bene t of the cooperative rather than the individual members are also supported at higher rates creating an incentive for the producers to work together. A cooperative has more power than individual companies when negotiating with customers and suppliers, for example, of feed. It can hire specialists who can work for all the member farms. e cooperative also implemented a project with an educational institution for students studying aquaculture. ree or four students rotated between the farms gaining practical experience to supplement the theoretical part of their education. With this combined experience the students can go on to take more advanced quali cations or even join university. e process bene ts both the students and the producers and contributes to the long term future of the industry.

Pelicanul Distribution Srl

Bucharest Romania office.pelicanul@gmail.com

Owner: George Ionescu

Activity: Production of freshwater farmed fish

Volumes: 900 t per year carps and related species; 100 t per year rainbow trout

Persuading conservative customers to try processed fish products can be a struggle