Aquaculture Species. Tench.
The reasons for the intensive production of Tench are several. The study of the species, need, demand, situation in Spain, viability
and yield in the volume of production of the species with our patented system explain these reasons.
Identification, Need and Demand
The Tench is an exclusively European species. Its cultivation in 2.015 amounted to a total of 1.434 tons. France is the main producer,
followed by the Czech Republic and Germany. The Tench is harvested in 13 countries. It is a very popular fish in the European market
and in the western region of the Iberian Peninsula for its fine meat and exquisite flavor. There is a great demand for this species
and it has a high market price. It is a species with a high gastronomic and commercial value, high tolerance to variations in temperature
and water quality conditions, and fundamental is an omnivorous species. Organic feedingstuffs for omnivore aquaculture species such
as Tench according to the Ecological Aquaculture Feeding Regulation, are obtained from ecological raw materials of vegetable or animal
origin, derived from fish waste products already captured for human consumption in fisheries, whose sustainability has been certified
by virtue of the Regulation of the European Parliament and Council. Therefore, we do not need to exhaust the sea to feed this species,
one of the priority lines for the development of Ecological Aquaculture Production of Tench.
In the last specialized aquaculture Congresses,
Tench was highlighted as one of the alternatives and species essential for the future of the aquaculture industry and especially for
Spanish continental aquaculture. There is currently a demand of about 1.000 tons of tench, and a potential demand of about 7.000 tons
is estimated. In Spain the current production capacity of Tench estimated does not reach 200 tonnes. Limited production capacity is
due to the traditional fattening systems used for Tench so far, these systems consist of the use of semi-natural ponds, with a limited
production capacity (no more 300 gr/m2 by pond, it would need a surface of 3,3 million of m2 of water to produce 1.000 tons of tench),
a seasonality in production (the Tench grows when the water temperature exceeds 16 Cº, this means that the Tench can only develop
during the spring and summer months), low growth rates (a Tench needs two years to reach commercial size) and high exposure of the
cropping system to other causes as predation, poor control of water quality, droughts, etc.
In order to achieve the production goals
and supply the current and future demand for Tench, it is necessary to implement intensive fattening systems. Only intensive crops
represent a control of the species and its surround, both reproduction, breeding, fattening and production (using differentiated ponds),
as well as food, water quality and temperature, wellbeing, etc. Food represents as in the rest of the intensive crops of other fish
species, around 50% of production costs. These systems allow to control in high degree the levels of production and the times of availability
in market, with production densities higher than 20 kg/m3.
Analysis Situation of the Tench in Spain
The Tench is an autochthonous species, its demand and high price in the market is marked by being linked to the history, to the gastronomic
tradition, to be appreciated like trophy of sport fishing with importance for the repopulation and to be associated to the important
role that It plays in the ecosystems of calm waters preventing its eutrophication.
The traditional breeding of this species is carried
out in lagoons and reservoirs in Extremadura and Castilla-León, in extensive and semi-extensive conditions, being very integrated
in the environment in which it develops, causing minimal impacts and being considered as an element dynamizing rural economies in
the areas where they are bred. In rivers it is not a frequent species and its populations are scarce. However, it is very favored
by continuous reinforcements of the populations in ponds of the Spanish West, converting its populations into abundant.
These repopulations
are due to the great economic interest of the species and, they are carried out through private fish farms that are dedicated to their
cultivation. All these fish farms make efforts in R+D+I to control and improve the efficiency of the productive extensive processes,
in order to increase their production. Despite these efforts and a long tradition in their consumption and cultivation, their production
has not experienced the expected development.
The production of Tench in Spain has varied considerably in recent years, with a strong
downward trend. These data correspond only to what "can be registered" because of the traditional breeding system, but nevertheless
the estimated production (including poaching, undeclared fishing, etc.) corresponds to approximately double. In Spain, 23 tons were
produced in 2.015, cultivated in ponds, with very little control over the process. This figure is far from the peaks that reached
the end of the 1.980s around 460 tons.
The evolution of consumption is proportional to its low productivity, and is caused by three
main causes:
- 1 ) The
significant reduction of wetlands currently available associated with long periods of drought.
- 2 ) The decrease in the quality of the continental waters.
- 3 ) The loss of interest in the low profitability of the traditional production system, which needs large sheets of water
conditioned (natural pond type), and much manual work.
The continental aquaculture in Spain bases its activity in the production of
rainbow trout, occupying Tench a marginal position in volume (approximately 100 times lower), but its delicacy from the gastronomic
point of view, turns this crop into Extremely attractive with a much more interesting market price.
At present, the production of
trout is producing a slowdown around – 5.2% per annum, due to market saturation and a consequent drop in prices. This slowdown has
positioned the Tench, due to its quality, price and demand, as an alternative to trout, including it as a strategic species according
to APROMAR 2.017 for the evolution of Spanish continental aquaculture, hence the growing interest on the part of the Trout producers
as well as other investors in investing in future Tench production projects.
The consumption of Tench, in the areas of production
have focused especially on the sizes of 100 to 130 grams with a valuation equivalent to fish classified as expensive, from 13 to 16
euros per kilo of tench. The current limitations in its production, only in extensive or semi-extensive conditions have conditioned
its commercial implantation at a national level, is the case of a species little known but with high demand.
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