Spain: New research sheds light on transmission of cancers in cockle populations

Transmissible cancers in marine animals such as cockles spread through the water and form tumors in their victims. They pose no threat to humans but are deadly to the animals themselves. While they are not new—having existed for hundreds or possibly thousands of years—their genetic make-up is only now understood by scientists searching for ways to combat this destructive shellfish disease. Recently, scientists at the Wellcome Sanger Institute of the CiMUS research centre at the Universidade de Santiago de Compostela in Spain, working with colleagues in other countries, have discovered unsettling news: such cockle cancers are highly genetically unstable, with a single animal’s tumor containing cancer cells with different numbers of chromosomes—unlike “normal” cancer DNA with the same chromosome count per cell.

The cancers that affect cockles, called bivalve transmissible neoplasia (BTN), are not contagious but freely transmittable in seawater, and they affect the animal’s immune system, like leukemia does in mammals. BTN spreads throughout the body and is usually lethal to the infected animal. It has been identified so far in clams, cockles, and mussels across the world. While cockle cancers pose no threat to humans, the cancer scientists studying these cockle diseases hope that in addition to the immediate gains from saving cockle populations, the insights scientists get by learning how cockle cancer cells overcome the effects of genomic instability can help researchers understand these phenomena in all forms of cancer, including in humans.

There are over 200 living species of cockle worldwide. The study focused on the common cockle (Cerastoderma edule) which is widely distributed from Iceland in the north to Senegal in the south.

Poland: Rising processing costs and weakened incomes hinder growth in fish consumption

Research into Polish seafood production and consumption by Market Data Forecast shows that consumer preferences for seafood remain strong but purchases are slowed by high prices in recent years. Driven by considerations of the nutritional value of seafood, Poles eat 12-13 kg of fish and seafood annually, with total seafood expenditures topping EUR912 million in 2022. Popular fish and seafood items in Poland include fresh fish, smoked fish, frozen fish, canned fish, and preserved fishmarinated or in various sauces.

Although the value of such purchases rose in 2022, the volume fell, because of declining real incomes throughout society and in the retail cost of food particularly, where the seafood category rose in price faster than other protein sources. Thus, sales value rose by 5 while volume fell by 8. Seafood prices are normally higher than prices of other meats, but in 2022 they rose by 14, to a premium of 45 over other meats and 35 over the price of cold cuts. These high prices combined with the increased price sensitivity of consumers to explain the declines in volumes sold.

Rising seafood processing costs are behind these rising retail prices, as producers battle hikes

Stores with large commercial areas are the major distribution channel for fish and seafood products and deliver about 75% of the volumes sold to Polish consumers. in energy and raw material prices. Much of the raw material, such as salmon, is imported and its price has reportedly been rising in recent years. Energy prices have been unstable throughout

Europe for many reasons. The researchers behind this latest study report that this adverse situation is probably temporary, and they find signs that pressures will ease in 2023.

Albania: New minister of agriculture brings wide experience to the job

In Albania, seafood matters fall under the responsibilities of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development within which is the Directorate of Fishery Service and Aquaculture. As of September this year, the Ministry is headed by Anila Denaj, who brings has a background in rural development and the banking sector. A 1995 graduate in finance and banking management from the University of Tirana, Ms Denaj was most recently the Minister of Finance and Economy, and deputy head of the Albanian Agribusiness Support Team (AASF), supported by the Albanian Government and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

She has nearly two decades of experience in the banking sector, including employment as an international financial advisor for a financial holding company, ProCredit Holding GmbH / IPC Consulting Gmbh, that posted her to several locations in Latin America, Europe, and Africa. She eventually rose to be the company’s deputy managing director.

In 2014 Ms Denaj became General Director in Albania’s Ministry of Finance and Economy. In her spare time, she has served on several important boards, such as the Administrative Council of the Mandatory Healthcare Insurance Fund in Albania (where she was briefly General Director), the Albanian Social Insurance Fund, and INSIG SA. Insurance Company. She was a member of A.K.E.P.’s (Electronic and Postal Communications Authority) board for three years with responsibility for electronic/ postal communications in Albania. Currently, as the chairperson of the sub-committee for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, she completed a programme on the topic “Circular Economy. Transition to Sustainable Development” from MIT’s Professional Education programme in Boston, USA.

The Ministry of Agriculture oversees regulation of the economic activity in the fisheries and aquaculture sector of the country with the objective of increasing the sector’s production capacity. Albania is in the process of acceding to the EU and is aligning its legislation with the EU. Several by-laws have been approved that transpose some of the principles of the Common Fishery Policy into Albanian legislation. The legislation also contains the main principles of FAO’s Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries, and the establishment of the

Denmark: Turkish delegation learns about shellfish production on Eurofish-organised field visit

Eurofish organized a trip for a Turkish delegation to the Danish Shellfish Centre which is part of the National Institute of Aquatic Resources at the Technical University of Denmark. The trip was designed to inform the delegates about mussels and oysters, the diseases that can afflict them and their control, regulations in Denmark governing the sector, and standard operating procedures along the entire value chain. Türkiye is keen to develop its legal and physical infrastructure for mussel and oyster production which it considers a potential growth area. Among the members of the delegation were Turgay Türkyilmaz, Deputy Director General; Tanju Ozdemirden, Head of Aquaculture; Gülser

Fidanci, Agricultural Engineer; all from the Directorate of Fisheries; as well as Özerdem Maltas, Vice President, Central Union of Aquaculture Producers; and representatives from the industry.

At the shellfish centre, in addition to the topics mentioned above, the delegation learned about the most novel farming techniques, biosecurity, and about the biology of mussels and oysters. On the second day of the visit the focus switched to algae and its production and to low trophic polycultures. The delegation also visited one of the biggest mussel farmers in Denmark and a major player in supplying live animals to the high-end market. The Danish industry partners also offered insights into their production, processing, marketing, and their reflections on the current state of the market in Denmark and in Europe. The Turkish delegation was very happy with the trip declaring it to be a very informative and useful learning experience. There are many things we have learned here that I expect will shape the development of the shellfish administration in our country, said Mr Türkyilmaz.

Eurofish organised a field trip for a Turkish delegation to Danish institutions involved with shellfish and algae production, a sector of increasing interest in Türkiye. Pictured, the Turkish participants and Eurofish representatives.

Türkiye: Initiative underway to clean up “ghost nets” from inland and marine waters

Abandoned ghost nets and other fishing gear floating in the water create pollution and take the lives of countless fish, reptiles, marine mammals, and birds annually, in almost every water body in the world. Academic research and fieldwork indicate that more than 300 aquatic creatures perish in every 100 meters of lost fishing nets and gear. Since 2014, the Directorate of Fisheries and Aquaculture under Türkiye’s Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has worked to reduce if not eliminate this scourge from the nation’s seas, shores, and lakes. Dubbed the Ghost Fishing Gear Clean-up Project, this long-term effort was expanded in 2022 to include rivers, so that by 2023 the project has covered 166 million square meters of internal waters and seas, and the removal of approximately 1 million square meters of fishing nets and 40,000 traps, gillnets, and similar discarded fishing equipment. The results so far are huge: estimates are that around 2.5 million aquatic creatures have been saved through the removal of fishing nets and an additional 250,000 through traps and gillnets.

Impressive, but this is mostly at major ports such as Istanbul, Izmir, and other places where pollution and dead animals are most noticeable. This vital cleanup will continue and cover more water bodies until the work is done. Additional activities seek to educate the public, which will

Norway: New Fisheries Minister wins industry support with assurances on quotas

In a cabinet reshuffle in October, the Prime Minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Støre, appointed Cecilie Myrseth to the position of Minister of Fisheries and Ocean Policy. She takes over from Bjørnar Selnes Skjæran, the minister since 2021. The news was met with optimism by industry representatives. One of the most important government posts in the resource-dependent kingdom, the Fisheries and Ocean Policy Minister has responsibility for a wide range of activities including fisheries, aquaculture, maritime policy, coastal development, shipping, and R&D.

Many factors make it a politically challenging one, including debates over wealth and income distribution across geographic regions and demographic classes, green policies, fishery sustainability, input costs, and seafood prices and markets. Ms Myrseth has been the MP for Troms and spokesperson for fisheries in the Labor Party, where she has long been involved with issues such as the negotiation of fisheries quotas. A new quota report has been recently announced by the government, so she will be jumping right into a sometimes hotly debated policy question.

Praising the appointment, the Labor Party says that the quota contribute to newly cleaned areas staying clean. Education initiatives such as Ghost Fishing Gear Awareness Events take place annually, involving district and local governments, schools and institutions, fishermen’s cooperatives, and NGOs, to inform and motivate the public. As a bonus, retrieved nets with some salvage value are recycled, which helps any number of sectors if only in a small way. report must deliver on what has long been the party’s priority, namely predictability and stability in the regulatory framework. Despite difficulties with the previous quota report, a broadbased fisheries policy has been a success. A Labor Party official said that unifying fisheries policy has been a success, with the industry transitioning from a subsidised sector to a profitable and sustainable one. Support for the appointment also came from industry, with optimism for continued good dialogue between the industry and the political leadership in the ministry regarding the work on the new quota report. The new minister is not new to the industry, where she has worked for several years, a familiarity that will prove important in addressing the coming challenges.

Ghost nets, often made of non-biodegradable materials like nylon, can persist in the ocean for decades, continuing to pose a threat to marine life during this time.

Denmark: When does water quality impart a muddy taste to farmed fish

A breakthrough was recently achieved when scientists at Copenhagen University discovered how to measure a substance that causes an offensive “muddy” aftertaste in the meat from farmed fish. This innovation may allow farmers to regulate water quality to avoid high concentrations of the naturally occurring substances in the water fish are raised in. The substance, which is otherwise harmless, is called geosmin and it is produced by algae and bacteria in very low concentrations. However, over time fish accumulate it in their flesh as water passes through their gills, and in very high concentrations the muddy aftertaste appears when the fish is consumed. The scientists’ breakthrough came about when they discovered how to measure exactly when the concentration of geosmin rises to “nasty” levels.

Our study, says Niels O. G. Jørgensen of the university’s Department of Plant and Environmental Science, shows that the substance creates flavour in the fish, even though it is only found in the water in extremely low concentrations. We find concentrations in fish that are 100 times higher than those in water. Because there has been a lack of methods to measure such low concentrations, it has not been possible to do much about it for a long time. But now we have the measurement methods for that. The research project studied tilapia raised in large net cages at six fish farms in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. The scientists used chemistry techniques such as gas chromatography and mass spectrometry, combined with a panel of gastronomists who loved eating fish. Together, these tools helped the researchers determine exactly when geosmin concentrations cause fish to taste “muddy.” The research was funded by the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) in Brazil, and by the Ministry of Higher Education and Science, the Strategic Research Council, Denmark

Consumers will soon no longer sometimes be confronted with a muddy taste from tilapia thanks to collaborative research between Brazil and Denmark.

AlgaEurope 2023, 12-15 December 2023, Prague