New alarm and Goro and Porto Garibaldi (Ferrara): wait for tomorrow's meeting at the ministry
Desk Solons have a nice saying who, to fight the blue crab, puts it easy: let's transform it into an opportunity on the table. The difficult thing seems to be getting it to the table. Because the latest news from the area most affected by the predator, namely Goro and Porto Garibaldi (Ferrara) say that even in the open sea the blue crab is rampant and constitutes a threat to the fish species that should have repopulated the seabed during the month and a half of stop fishing.
Two weeks before the start of the new year, reports La Nuova Ferrara, the fishermen of the two local marinas of Goro and Porto Garibaldi join the cry of alarm of their colleagues who operate in the shellfish farming sector.
"At 10-12 miles where we go fishing, because at closer distances there are no fish, either due to the still high temperatures, or due to the absence of storm surges that could move the seabed, we find large quantities of blue crabs and the co-presence of females (80%) and males (20%), while until last year only females were found near the coast, which moved further out to sea only to lay their eggs", explains Mauro Gennari, president of the Isperia cooperative, dedicated to I drag.
"If the Region wants to try to stem this problem, it must meet the fishermen's requests - adds Gennari -. In ten hours of fishing a fishing vessel can collect several quintals of blue crabs". And even if in the first eight weeks of fishing since last September 11th, when the organic fishing ban ceased in the Northern Adriatic, the fishing boats can lower their nets from 4 miles onwards (the larger ones from 6 miles), all double their distances from the coast due to the shortage of fish before 10-12 miles.
In this first phase of resumption of fishing activity, only mantis shrimp (small), cuttlefish (few), fair quantities of prawns (mostly small) and some sole end up in the nets. The cost of diesel fuel, which has reached the threshold of 1.05 euros per litre, also affects the income of fishermen.
"Our fishermen record the presence of the blue crab every day even from 9 to 12 miles - underlines Vadis Paesanti, vice president of Confcooperative Fedagripesca Emilia-Romagna -. The invasive and massive proliferation has been detected from Goro to Cervia. We take into account that every day each fishing vessel can catch up to 2.5 quintals of blue crab."
According to the numbers, the sale per kilo of the alien crustacean with the cobalt blue carapace stands at 30 cents per kilo at the Goro market, up to a maximum of 2.5 Euros "on good days". The free fall in prices from last summer to today is also and above all connected to the huge quantities of blue crab caught.
"99% of the crabs caught by fishing boats - continues Paesanti - end up being disposed of on the quay. The fishermen insert them into the special beans positioned in designated areas in the port and a heavy vehicle from the company responsible and authorized also for the disposal of the capulerium recovers them ".
Meanwhile, the associations united in the Alliance of Italian cooperatives Agci Agrital and Agci Emilia Romagna, Fedagripesca and Confcooperative Ferrara, Legacoop Agroalimentare e Pesca and Legacoop Estense communicate that, "following the convocation of a meeting by the Ministry of Agriculture, sovereignty food and forestry for tomorrow, 26 September, concerning the blue crab emergency, the demonstration scheduled for 27 September in front of the Prefecture of Ferrara is, at present, suspended pending the results of the discussion".
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Goro, FE, Italy, 09/25/2023 08:21
EFA News - European Food Agency
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