Aquaculture in Italy
Italian aquaculture represents a real vanguard in Europe, both for the close integration of the supply chain within the company and for the quality of the products, which have high value in terms of nutritional, organoleptic characteristics and food safety.
Content
- The importance of aquaculture in Italy
- Marine fish farming in Italy
Tuna
Sea bream
Lakedra
Light croaker
Common silver croaker - Freshwater aquaculture in Italy
Trout and brown trout
Sturgeons
Arctic char
Som
Eel
Carp - The future of aquaculture in Italy
The importance of aquaculture in Italy
Currently, there are about 800 aquaculture enterprises in Italy, producing 140 thousand tons of products per year, which provides about 40% of national fish production and 30% of the demand for fresh fish products. About 7,500 employees work here.
In Italy, about 30 species of fish, shellfish and crustaceans are grown, but 97% of the national production is made up of 5 species: sea bream, trout, sea bass, mussels and oysters. It is a major shellfish-producing country, accounting for two-thirds of local aquaculture mussel production.
Most sea bass and sea bream farms are located in marine areas that are not heavily influenced by currents, close to the coast or inside bays such as the Gulf of Follonica or the Gulf of Gaeta.
Instead, extensive aquaculture is practiced mainly in coastal lagoons, so-called "fishing valleys". Italy has an ancient history of grazing mullet in lagoons. Currently, this experience has been somewhat refined.
Almost all the most important factories are located in the north, in particular in Veneto, Emilia Romagna and Friuli Venezia Giulia, which account for more than 50% of national production.
Marine fish farming in Italy
In the sea, fish farmers in Italy grow tuna, sea bream, sea bass, mullet, lakedra, and croaker.
Tuna
Tuna farming begins with the placement of wild-caught specimens in breeding cages. Breeding this species is highly profitable and is constantly expanding.
Individuals are captured between April and July and then transported in sea cages, which typically range from 30 to 90 m in diameter and can have a total volume in excess of 230,000 m3. Transfer to the cage is carried out from May to August, the size of individuals ranges from 4 to 20 kg in juveniles, but can reach 300-400 kg in adult tuna.
Captivity can be of two types: short-term, defined as finishing or finishing, lasting 7-8 months; long-term, which lasts about 20 months.
During the fattening phase, animals are fed fish of low commercial value, such as sardines, mackerel, anchovies and squid, and the amount of feed introduced during the summer months can reach 7-10% of the total biomass present in the cage.
Cultivated tuna is caught primarily in the autumn-winter period, when the wild product is less available on the market and, therefore, sales prices are higher.
In past years, tuna was consumed primarily in canned form, with the product almost entirely destined for the canning industry.
Currently, bluefin tuna production is almost entirely destined for the Japanese market, where the product is primarily consumed in the form of sushi and sashimi, with a small portion exported to the United States. Market prices vary depending on the marketing method used (fresh, frozen) and the quality of the product ( fat content, meat color).
Sea bream
In the past, sea bream was widely grown only in lagoons or saltwater pools, and the first forms of intensive farming emerged in the 1980s. “Valliculture” is a type of extensive agriculture practiced in the lagoons of the Upper Adriatic, based on the capture of juvenile forms migrating from the sea to the lagoons.
In Italy, the regions where the largest production of sea bream is recorded are Tuscany, Apulia and Sicily.
Lakedra
Cultivation of Lacedra is entirely based on the capture of individuals from the wild, as the knowledge required to control the reproductive phase has yet to be addressed at the experimental level. The availability of fry represents the main limiting factor for breeding of these species. This is due to the complexity of the stage of catching individuals for use as reproducers.
Recently, adequate methods for transporting and housing reproductive animals in a confined space, tank or cage, as well as some methods for capturing and transporting juveniles (50-150 g) have been developed.
Experience carried out in recent years has revealed good adaptation of Lacedra to segregation and intensive breeding, especially in floating and underwater cages.
This species is characterized by very rapid weight growth both in the wild and in captivity. In fact, in some breeding experiments conducted in floating cages, wild juveniles weighing about 60-70 g reached a weight of 900 g after about 5 months of breeding and exceeded 1200 g after a year.
Growing lakedra also has another limitation regarding the feeding of this species. It is common to use fresh diets based on oily fish or fish waste in combination with dry feed, but the lack of special feed on the market means that growth rates obtained with a fresh diet are even higher than with dry feed.
Light croaker
Controlled propagation and larval rearing methods were first developed in Italy in 1998.
The extensive breeding of croakers carried out in some Venetian lagoons has shown modest results, not so much in the growth rate of individuals (July-November 50-220 g), but in the rate of their recapture, which was found to be about 7% of the total.
Breeding croakers in semi-extensive systems has produced very encouraging results. In fact, this species, bred in polyculture with mullet, manages to triple its body weight in just 8 months of breeding, indicating even greater growth than that recorded in modern trials conducted under intensive conditions.
The croaker, due to its characteristics of early growth and unpretentiousness, is considered very promising as an accessory species; Moreover, several sea bass and sea bream farming enterprises have dedicated several tanks to the production of this innovative species. Most breeding experiments have been carried out in hatcheries using concrete tanks, but detailed information on breeding carried out in floating cages is lacking.
Common silver croaker
This is one of the most recent species to be introduced into fish farming in the Mediterranean. The first breeding trials were carried out in France.
Croakers are bred in intensive systems, both in land-based facilities and in sea-based systems. dkah, and the main production centers are located in Italy in the regions of La Spezia and Orbetello.
The most popular direction is the breeding of croakers inside floating cages, both round and square, with a volume of 500 to 1000 m3. Recently, underwater structures located at a depth of 10-20 m3 have been used to breed this species. m, with a volume of 2000 m3 and a reduced planting density (10-15 individuals/m3). Under these breeding conditions, excellent growth rates of individuals were found.
Freshwater aquaculture in Italy
Several species of trout are bred in aquaculture. Marbled, rainbow trout, brown trout, catfish, carp, eel, arctic char.
Trout and brown trout
Marbled trout have been successfully bred in captivity only for a short time as part of projects to stock water bodies with the production of fry.
Brown trout are valued by consumers, but despite this, the products obtained on farms are quite small. In fact, currently brown trout farming is mainly focused on the production of fry and adults, which will be used to populate reservoirs for sport fishing.
Rainbow trout were introduced to Italy about a century ago, and thanks to their ability to adapt to different environmental conditions, they can now be found in most rivers and lakes located in the country. It is bred in intensive aquaculture - in cages and pools.
Sturgeons
Sturgeon farming in Italy began in the late seventies, during the period when the first experimental trials were carried out on the management and breeding of fish for the repopulation of waterways. By the mid-eighties, sturgeon farming began to acquire commercial importance in connection with the breeding of an overseas species - the Pacific beluga (Acipenser transmontanus) - white sturgeon. It continues to be the species of greatest commercial interest, even though over the years the necessary knowledge and techniques for sturgeon farming have been acquired through numerous experimental captive trials. About ten species of sturgeon are bred. Some of them are of commercial importance, others are of only experimental importance.
In subsequent years, there was a progressive increase in the production of Pacific beluga, mainly due to improved weaning and pre-fattening technologies. Previously, the minimum commercial size was around 3-4 kg, achieved in approximately 4 years of breeding, while the species is now traded with a minimum body weight of 8 kg or more, achieved in approximately 6 years of breeding.
Meat is mainly sold as fresh, frozen, whole or sliced, or after a smoking process. It produces valuable caviar. Some of the fry are sent to stock lakes for sport fishing, since this species, due to its large body size and high fighting qualities, is a very popular prey for fishermen.
Arctic char
In Italy, Arctic char is native to the alpine region of Trentino-Alto Adige, and from there it has been introduced to the Alpine regions. It lives in large groups in small alpine and large pre-alpine lakes, where it searches for deep, cold and well-oxygenated waters.
Arctic char plays an important role among the innovative species of greatest interest for farming in fresh and cold waters, thanks to its high stocking density, relatively fast growth even in cold waters, high conversion rate, remarkable adaptability to the artificial environment and a market value significantly higher, than other farmed salmonids.
Som
Farming of the common catfish began in lower Modena in the 1970s, starting with juveniles collected from the wild. Over the years, this practice spread to other provinces of Emilia-Romagna, as well as the regions of Veneto and Lombardy, where it occupied the outlying territories of numerous agricultural companies. Catfish are still reared almost exclusively in earthen ponds, which are usually rectangular in shape and range from 1000 to 6000 m2 in area. The depth of these basins varies between 1.20-1.50 m to prevent excessive development of coastal vegetation, while the bottom slope is usually 2-4%, oriented towards the collection point. The latter is represented by a surface area equal to 3-10% of the pond area, and a greater depth - approximately 30-50 cm.
Pond sizes can vary depending on the size of surfaces used for rearing, water availability and soil permeability.
Catfish is sold primarily in certain areas of the Po Valley, where this product, which is part of the traditional cuisine, is appreciated by a large part of consumers. Its meat is very similar to eel meat, has a yellow-orange color and is considered very tasty. This species is also bred for introduction into sport fishing lakes.
Eel
Widespread eel farming began in the 1970s in Italy, West Germany and Denmark. By the end of the decade, the first closed systems using water heated to a temperature of 24-26°C were created to promote optimal eel growth.
Currently, in the regions of northern Italy, Denmark and the Netherlands, there are intensive farms that have a water recycling system to achieve adequate reservoir temperature levels.
This growing system uses both sea and brackish water and is mainly adopted in Italy. Valliculture I is a typical practice in the northern regions of the Adriatic, and eels are introduced into culture when they reach a weight of 15-35 g. This type of system assumes a very low density (4-15 kg/ha) and therefore requires very large areas.
Extensive farming is typical of traditional eel farming and begins with placing small eels in tanks with a surface area ranging from 100 to 350 m2. Upon reaching marketable sizes, they are transferred to buildings with an area of 1000-1500 m2. The water inside usually reaches a temperature of 18 to 25 °C and can remain stagnant or move with a gentle flow of water.
Intensive breeding, if large areas are available, can be carried out in tanks dug in the ground with a volume of 1000 m3.
In case the surface is a limiting factor, but it is possible to have an optimal amount of good quality water, it is preferable to use concrete, PVC or plastic tanks with a maximum volume of 250 m3. Inside these structures it is possible to operate at higher densities than in earthen tanks, but artificial oxygenation becomes necessary. To obtain an annual production of 150 tons, an area of 1 hectare is sufficient.
Tanks for intensive closed cycle have variable sizes from 4 to 50 m3, have a round or quadrangular shape and are located in isolated rooms. Water recirculation occurs every 15-20 minutes and guarantees continuous oxygenation, since the flow is constantly supersaturated.
Small eels are introduced into these structures when they reach a weight of 50 g and, under optimal conditions, a breeding density of 100-150 kg/m3 can also be adopted. The annual production obtained in these structures is higher than in open farming. In fact, if your covered area is 0.1 hectares, you can get even 150 tons of product in closed-loop systems. However, it should be taken into account that this type of agriculture is very expensive, both in terms of the costs of the systems (oxygenators, mechanical filters, biofilters, heating and pumping of water) and in terms of the energy used.
Eels are usually sold as a processed product, usually after being smoked. There are two commonly used marketing sizes for this type of product: 120–180 g, most common in Holland, and 300–600 g, the largest size, most commonly used in Germany.
Carp
Extensive cultivation is commonly practiced in river and stream watersheds. These are areas on the banks of river beds used for the diversion and temporary storage of flood waters, which are subsequently reintroduced in controlled quantities into the river slightly downstream.
Under these conditions, carp are bred in polyculture with other cyprinid species, catfish and some predators such as pike and largemouth bass.
Annual production reaches several hundred kg/ha, and all phases of the biological cycle occur naturally, while human intervention occurs only at the harvesting stage, which can occur annually or biennially.
Semi-intensive culture is practiced in different types of ponds, the size and characteristics of which vary depending on the age of the carp. This method of farming is characterized by a very low technological level and fits perfectly into agricultural circulation. In fact, it is often carried out in marginal areas that are poorly suited for crop cultivation.
Reproduction.
Carp reproduction can be of two types: natural or controlled.
The natural type occurs in May and June, when the water temperature is around 18 °C, and occurs in special ponds. These areas are usually characterized by dimensions ranging from 100 to 1000 m2 and a maximum depth of 80 cm. The bottom of these pools is usually sown with perennial grasses that are resistant to submersion for a long time (ryegrass), and the banks are left to grow abundantly to ensure reliable support for caviar.
Before breeding begins, sexually mature spawners are caught and moved to spawning grounds in a ratio of females to males of 1:2. Under favorable conditions, precipitation occurs within a few days.
In Central European countries and less commonly in Italy, during the period after cleaning, the water level in the pond is lowered in order to bring spawning animals into the perimeter channel and collect them. All this is in order to avoid both the phenomena of predation of eggs and larvae by the parents, and the possible transmission of viruses and bacteria. This operation must be carried out in the evening to prevent damage to the eggs by direct exposure to solar radiation.
Hatching usually reaches rates of 30-50% and the larvae, which initially measure 4.5 mm, reabsorb the yolk sac within 3-4 days and subsequently begin swimming in search of zooplankton.
Controlled reproduction is carried out in the spring months in combination with natural reproduction using method of hormonal stimulation.
At the end of June or the first week of July, the fry are transferred to pre-fattening ponds, the surface area of which does not exceed several thousand m2, and the depth ranges from 60 to 130 cm. The initial density varies from 2 to 10 fish/m2, the fry are fed pellets or extruded feed, remains there for 3-4 months until it reaches a weight of 20-40 g. At this stage we begin transferring to ponds used in the fattening phase.
The size of fattening ponds varies from several hundred m2 to 1 ha in area, and the depth is usually from 80 to 150 cm. Water exchange in these environments is very modest and the water is almost always of surface origin.
The fattening phase can end in the second year of the carp's life or continue for another year, since there is a significant demand in Italian sport fisheries for fish weighing between 400 and 1500 g.
The future of aquaculture in Italy
The Directorate General of Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture has developed forecasts for the growth of the aquaculture sector under a conservative scenario. Until 2030, an average cumulative increase in production volume is projected to be 38%, both due to an increase in the production capacity of existing factories and through the construction of new factories. More sustainable growth is expected in marine and freshwater fish farming compared to shellfish farming.
The species most Italians will grow are sea bream, sea bass, turbot, salmon, trout, croaker, lakedra, eels, shrimp, some types of tuna, river flounder, tilapia, carp, catfish and pangasius.