A new strategy for growth in the aquaculture sector was yesterday launched with the aim of adding €70 million in gross value to the economy.
The strategy, covering 2014 to 2025, was hailed by Fisheries Parliamentary Secretary Roderick Galdes as the first of its kind and “a key milestone for government and the sector”.
In fact, a draft strategy for Malta had already been prepared in 2012 by the University of Stirling in the UK with similar aims.
One of the aims in both strategies is the establishment of aquaculture zones, one in the south east of Malta. This was a highly contentious application before the planning authority for years. It was finally given the go-ahead in 2005 despite years of strong opposition from the Marsascala business community and local councils in the south but has not yet been implemented.
The new strategy proposes that all aquaculture operations should take place in designated aquaculture zones. All existing sites for capture-based species (tuna caught from the wild and fattened in cages) and closed cycle species (such as seabream and seabass cultured from the egg) are to be designated as aquaculture zones, subject to adherence with established capacity limits. “By reaching the production target of 5,000 tonnes in addition to the tuna penning production, until 2020 it is expected that the industry will have up to 1,185 full-time equivalent direct and indirect jobs with a gross added value of €70 million to the Maltese economy,” Mr Galdes said, adding that at the moment the figure was about half this.
A gross added value of €70 million to the Maltese economy
Currently, the industry is made up of six farms – one farm producing only closed cycle species, one both closed cycle species and tuna, and the others only tuna.
The growth envisioned focuses on closed cycle species, since bluefin tuna is subject to quotas by ICCAT (an inter-governmental fishery organisation responsible for the conservation of tuna) and the EU due to the risk of its extinction as a result of overexploitation of the lucrative species.
Production from tuna penning reached the peak in 2007 when Malta was the largest producer in the Mediterranean, aided by its favourable position on tuna migratory routes and expertise in offshore aquaculture.
The bulk of penned tuna production is exported to Japan as a frozen product, primarily for the lower-value supermarket sushi and sashimi trade.
The production process for tuna consists of the capture of wild adult fish in May and June, which are then transferred to pens and fattened for a period of six months or more. The fish are fed on thawed wet baitfish.
In contrast, Malta is only a minor producer of closed cycle species, with production reaching 2,077 tonnes in 2009, compared with a regional production of around 250,000 tonnes dominated by major industries in Greece, Turkey and Spain.
The aim in the new strategy is to increase this production to 5,000 tonnes yearly. These fish are fed dry pellets, which are highly digestible and have less of an environmental impact.
The strategy also proposes that the aquaculture sector be placed under the responsibility of the Fisheries Department that would be responsible for enforcing the conditions imposed by Mepa.
The Fisheries Department is being restructured, and a code of good practice is being developed.