Romania will set up and operate its first fish farms in the Black Sea this year, as announced by environment minister Mircea Fechet, with certain areas already assigned for future farms.

Investments are long overdue, as discussions about fish farms in the Black Sea have been ongoing for decades in Romania, while similar investments have already been made in Bulgaria, according to the minister. 

“Starting this year, we will have mussels produced here in Romania, oysters produced here, and several species of fish that we currently import either from Greece or Bulgaria. I have seen how colleagues from the institute are monitoring the adaptation capacity of rainbow trout in the Black Sea and sea bass, a fish highly appreciated by consumers,” Fechet said during a conference in the port city of Constanta, according to Agerpres.

The leases will give investors “sufficient time” to recover their investments, around 20 years, Fechet added. He also promised that the government will ease red tape, facilitating the issuing of permits as well as building appropriate beach infrastructure. 

“I am confident that we will also ensure the necessary infrastructure, which may vary depending on the type of technology and fish farm. However, I believe these things need to be addressed progressively,” added the minister of environment, Mircea Fechet.

According to Eurofish, an organization advocating for the development of fisheries and aquaculture in Europe, consumption of fisheries and aquaculture products is far below the EU average in Romania, despite upward trends in recent years. As a result, in 2021 Romanians consumed around 8.12 kg of fish per capita, most of it sold through supermarkets. The top four preferred species are trout, carp, mackerel, and salmon. 

Source - https://www.romania-insider.com