Estonia: Aquaculture volumes continue to fall, prices continue to rise

New data from Estonia’s Department of Statistics show that sales volume of farmed fish fell to 801 tonnes in 2022, down by 50 tonnes in 2021 and the third yearly decline in a row. The average sales price rose to 6 euros per kg in 2022, up from 5 euros per kg a year earlier, and nearly double the average price three years ago. Rainbow trout remains the most farmed and traded fish in Estonia, accounting for 85 of the country’s total farmed fish volume. Trout caviar output reached 2,7 tonnes in 2022, down sharply from the previous year, and the lowest volume in a decade. However, the average price of fish caviar grew by 50 from a year earlier. Crayfish output totaled 0,6 tonnes, down from a 2009 peak of 2,0 tonnes. Besides trout, species produced by Estonian aquaculture include tench, eel, African catfish, carp, common catfish, sturgeon (Siberian and Russian sturgeon), and grass carp.

Estonia’s production from capture fisheries and aquaculture alone is on average three times higher than the annual consumption of fish and seafood. Marinated, salted, and smoked fish and seafood in an Estonian supermarket.

Denmark: Fishermen stress need for government to involve them in siting new wind turbines

The Danish Parliament has approved a plan for a massive expansion of offshore wind generation of nine gigawatts by the year 2030. The locations of the necessary new wind turbines and their connecting underwater cables will directly impact Danish fishermen because these locations are generally off-limits to fishing activity, say the Danish Fishermen Producers Organization (DFPO) and the Danish Fisheries Association (DFA), both representing commercial fishing interests. Without disputing that there is a growing need for sustainable energy production, the fishing industry is determined to become more involved in the decision-making process regarding turbine location so that fishing and electricity generation can coexist. The DFA notes that, according to research by Danish Technical University, Danish fishermen today operate on one third of the Danish seabed, with 90 of their catch taken from just under 20 of those waters. Thus, DFA points out, it should be possible to avoid placing turbines on important fishing grounds.

Fishing contributes healthy and climate-friendly food and valuable jobs, says Svend Erik Andersen, DFA chairman, and the Danish government needs to deliver on its promise of coexistence between fishing and offshore turbines. Even restricting fishing over cables should be avoided because, the association says, fishing vessels have proven they can successfully fish over cables currently in place. Furthermore, with fishing activity occupying a fraction of overall Danish water area, it should be straightforward to avoid placing new turbines on important fishing grounds. The parliamentary majority also agreed to set aside half a billion kroner for a new ocean foundation, Havfund, to ensure that the marine environment and fish stocks will not suffer from the expansion of offshore turbines. This must involve fishing industry interests as well, says DFA. “We are happy that our concerns about the marine environment and fish stocks are being taken care of,” says Andersen, “and the DFA are naturally ready to contribute to the foundation’s work, and we hope that we will be involved.”

Ukraine: Real dimensions of Kakhovka disaster difficult to estimate

After the destruction of Kakhovka Dam on Dnipro River on 6 June 2023 the Kakhovka reservoir has lost 70 of the water volume it stored, flooding cities, villages, agricultural lands, and industrial facilities for hundreds of kilometers downstream, a broad area covering at least 5,000 sq km. Drinking water supplies, sewage pumping stations, and the drainage system of the immense Dnipro River have been obliterated. This, combined with destruction of homes and other buildings and essential infrastructure, has rendered untold numbers of citizens homeless, although to date official deaths have been limited due to Ukraine’s quick responses.

The fisheries sector of Ukraine was particularly hard-hit. The most valuable region for inland fishery and aquaculture is the lower Dnipro before it joins the Black Sea. The dam’s destruction and the resulting flood destroyed more than 100 fish farms covering an area of 1,045 hectares, and that includes only the farms on the unoccupied side bank of the river. No useful information is available from the occupying forces about the destruction of fish farms on the occupied side. Due to a significant drop in the water level, dying fish and other aquatic animals are observed. This situation leads to the irreversible loss of natural populations of aboriginal species of aquatic bioresources that lived in the reservoir, and aquaculture farms were left without water.

Two of the largest Ukrainian fish breeding facilities have been disabled: the Kherson complex breeding freshwater fish juveniles for the reproduction of native species, and the Dniprovsky complex for sturgeon reproduction. The natural characteristics of the Dnipro River basin have been irrecoverably altered, and any chance of rebuilding the region’s aquaculture sector is completely uncertain. The total immediate environmental damage and financial costs of destruction cannot be estimated because the left bank region is occupied by Russian forces that are not providing information, never mind assistance to those in need. However, it is already obvious that damage to fisheries and aquaculture sectors will extend to the Black Sea’s ecosystem and fish resources.

The flood will completely change the sea’s salinity and water quality as millions of tonnes of fresh water, carrying untold tonnes of pollution from the upstream destruction, flows into the sea. The ruined land left bare after the flood will not recover as drought inevitably hits the region.

Türkiye: Marine biodiversity threatened by invasive algae

An invasive and readily adaptable algae has taken hold in the Marmara Sea and threatens the Black Sea, scientists report. The seaweed, identified as the genus Caulerpa in the family of green seaweeds, is unique in that an individual consists of a single cell, making it one of the largest single-cell plants in the world. Caulerpa has the nickname “killer algae” because of the speed of adaptation to new environments (limited, however, to tropical and subtropical climates) and the invasive nature of its behavior, given that it has no natural predators. Some scientists believe it may have arrived from the Indo-Pacific region through the Suez Canal, and invaded the Mediterranean and Aegean Seas. In the Marmara Sea it has already displaced native flora, such as seagrass, limiting their viable range.

The algae Caulerpa can be exterminated, as shown by successful efforts to eradicate it from southern California waters, but only if caught early enough. The spread of invasive species can be attributed to climate change, rising seawater temperatures, increased salinity, pollution, and fishing and shipping activities. Efforts to control or eliminate invasive species include controlling the discharge of ship ballast waters and expanding marine protected areas to limit human activity. The loss of native species such as seagrass can adversely affect marine environment’s whole food chain, including fish and shellfish resources.

Türkiye hosts nine Caulerpa species, of which only two are native while the others are invasive.

Italy: New data put Italy near the top of the world’s producers of high quality caviar

World demand for caviar outstrips supply, and prices continue a long-term upward trend. Data for 2022 recently released by API (Italian Fish Farmers Association) show production of caviar from sturgeon and other fish grew to 62 tonnes, around 10 of global supply of 600 tonnes, with rising average prices. This success is likely to continue, given the strict attention paid by Italian fish farmers to species selection, breeding and farming conditions, environmental sustainability, and final product quality. Only China is a larger producer, but Italian farmers assert that the quality of Italian caviar far surpasses the mass-production nature of the Chinese variety.

True caviar comes from several species of sturgeon, which are endangered in the wild and slow growing on farms. Therefore, such caviar is expensive, but a burgeoning demand for caviar substitutes at more affordable prices is readily met by farmers of trout and several other fish species. The common feature in all this production in Italy is quality control. Italian producers operate strictly under both self-imposed and government monitored quality conditions, ensured a high-grade product while maintaining environmental sustainability and animal welfare. As a result, Italian caviar commands high prices on domestic and, increasingly, international markets. Members of API can rely on past generations of farming experience, as caviar production continues to grow its share of Italy’s famous fishery and aquaculture industry and market.