The role played by intermediary goods and services in terms of strengthening and developing the aquaculture industry was recognized by all the participants. Discussion of this topic concentrated on sea bass and sea bream farming. All participants felt that much of the fish farmers' and researchers' concern should be directed toward two main areas:
- the development of proper diets which would improve food conversion efficiency and decrease the incidence of diseases which are prevalent on grow-out farms and hatcheries;- technological developments to increase the survival rate of hatchery reared sea bass and sea bream fingerlings.
All participants agreed that these two areas were the most important as together they represented about 55% of total production costs.
Sea bass/bream feed prices were not quantified by type or quality but were reported to be US$ 1.06/kg for fry feed in Cyprus. Grow-out feeds were reported to be F.F. 5/kg (US$ 0.76) in France, US$ I/kg in Greece, Lit. 1 300/kg (US$ 0.93) in Italy, US$ 0.70/kg in Portugal and Pts. 135/kg (US$ 0.99) in Spain. Eel feed was stated to be US$ 0.70/kg in Portugal. Sea bass/bream feed represents only about one percent of total European fish feed sales. Currently about 1 500 t per year of sea bass/bream feeds, all sold in the Mediterranean, are produced by the one manufacturer present. This was said to be about 50% of the total market for these products.
A comparison of the benefits of dry and wet feeds was proposed by one representative. Even though more expensive, dry feed has shown to be easier to handle, easier to automate, more consistent in quality, and produces better growth. On the other hand, wet feed is cheaper and can be prepared on site; but labour utilization is greater, there being many difficulties in handling, automatic feeding and consistency. Most participants showed greater preference for the utilization of dry feed, especially in intensive fish farming. Feed quality was recognized as the most important requisite for good fish production.
Feed costs as a proportion of total production costs on grow-out farms varies from 27 to 33% (Table 8). One participant noted that this percentage is still low when compared with the salmon and chicken farming industries where feed costs are as high as 45-55% and 60-65% of total production costs respectively.
Even though improvements in feed quality are foreseen, it was generally thought that decreases in unit costs were unlikely.
In Cyprus there are two sea bass/bream hatcheries, mainly oriented towards an export market. The capacity of these hatcheries is 2 million juveniles per year while current output is about 170 000 per year. There are at least 10 hatcheries in Italy which are estimated to produce a total of 6 million juveniles annually. France has five hatcheries, with a capacity of 6 million juveniles per year; about 1 million per year are produced now. In Greece only one hatchery is currently operational. Its current output equals its capacity at 1.8 million juveniles annually. Spain has four hatcheries with a capacity and current output of 6 million juveniles per year. Tunisia has two public hatcheries intended for research and one private hatchery about which no information was available. Hatchery production is not yet started in Portugal or Turkey. It is thought there is little opportunity for the development of 'backyard' hatcheries for sea bass and sea bream, particularly because of the need to maintain large brood fish.
Mullet fry were reported to be priced, according to species and seasonality, from Lit. 30 to 130 (US$ 0.02-0.09) each in Italy1 in 1986. Elvers were reported to cost US$ 26-30/kg in France, rising to US$ 46 in December, while they were US$ 62/kg in Portugal and US$ 25-36/kg in Italy.1
1 S. Cataudella (pers.comm.)
Hatchery-reared sea bass juveniles were reported to be F.F. 3.5-5.9 (US$ 0.53-0.90) each in France according to size, while sea bream were F.F. 4.6-7.6 (US$ 0.70-1.15) each. Prices in Cyprus were reported to be US$ 0.60 each locally or US$ 0.65 for export. In Greece hatchery-reared juveniles were Gr.Dr. 80 (US$ 0.57) each for bass and Gr.Dr. 100 (US$ 0.71) each for bream. In Portugal sea bass juveniles collected from the wild were US$ 0.35 each. Hatchery-reared sea bass and sea bream juveniles in Spain were Pts. 80 (US$ 0.59) and 100 (US$ 0.74) each respectively in 1986. In Italy fry cost up to Lit. 1 200 (US$ 0.86) each depending on size.
Table 8: Comparison of Production Costs of Three Sea Bass/Sea Bream Cage Farms in the Mediterranean (%)
|
Farm1 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
|
Feed |
33 |
27 |
28 |
|
Seed |
23 |
29 |
25 |
|
Labour |
10 |
8 |
12 |
|
Depreciation |
7 |
7 |
11 |
|
Financial Costs |
11 |
11 |
13 |
|
Management |
6 |
8 |
5 |
|
Packaging |
5 |
5 |
4 |
|
Others |
5 |
5 |
2 |
|
Total |
100 |
100 |
100 |
|
1 |
1 Greek fish farm with hatchery |
|
|
2 Greek fish farm without hatchery, running on experimental basis |
|
|
3 Italian fish farm with hatchery |
All participants showed great concern about the need to increase the current Mediterranean production of sea bass and sea bream juveniles. In fact, since each country represented in the workshop plans many aquaculture investment programmes for the production of these two species, shortages of juveniles could become one of the greatest bottlenecks in further development. This imbalance between demand and supply, which is already being experienced, could result in unreasonably high juvenile prices and limit the potential production capacity of individual fish farms. Participants felt that shortage of juveniles could cause unpredictable effects for Mediterranean producers in economic and productive terms. Wild fry were said to be abundant only in Portugal and Turkey which have not yet experienced intensive fish farming.
Juvenile costs as a proportion of total grow-out costs vary from 23 to 29% (Table 8). Some participants stated that profit margins on hatchery-reared sea bass and sea bream juveniles are as high as 25-28%. It follows that increases in supply and improvements in technology, which could lower the mortality rate, may result in a lower international price for juveniles.
While biological improvements made life easier for fish farmers, participants believed that developments in other areas were not taking place in parallel. Anaesthetics and other chemicals required before and after fish handling, automatic feeders with spreaders to avoid feed wastage, and technical improvements related to cage construction, were given as examples of topics requiring priority attention.
A major concern of participants were the difficulties encountered by private investors in obtaining rights over areas where fish farms could be established. Producers present at the workshop also stressed the difficulties encountered in getting the necessary public services such as licences, energy, telephones, telex, etc. Fish farms are almost always isolated from the community.
The workshop believed that solutions to the problems and difficulties discussed would lower production costs and make intensive fish farming less vulnerable to falls in product value. Production costs of three cage farming units were presented. Two farms were in Greece and the third was located near Trieste, Italy (Table 8). The figures presented revealed that production technology has reached a substantial homogenity. Differences in cost breakdown were attributed to specific management variants. One of the Greek farms and the Italian farm produce their own juveniles while the other Greek farm is still at an experimental stage. However, total feed and seed costs varied only between 53 to 57% of total production costs.
Subsequent discussion was then concentrated on the possibility of reducing margins 15-20% to meet a decreasing trend in market prices. Prices may drop due to the lower production costs of extensive farming systems; Mediterranean production from this source is expected to rise, resulting in greater competition for intensive farmers.
Average production costs and profit of a traditional 'valle' system of northern Italy were provided by one participant (Table 9) to provide an indication of the production costs of extensive aquaculture. Total production was estimated to be 100 kg/ha; about 50% was mullet, the remaining 50% being equally distributed between sea bass and sea bream.1 Gross profit was estimated at nearly 20%.
1 In 1983 official Greek statistics reported that, in Messologhi and Amvrakikos lagoons, production of sea bream was 49.2 and 41.2% of total catch respectively, while for sea bass it was 7.8 and 28% However, in other Greek lagoons there was a much lower percentage of high value species.
Investments in the ESAV2 valli were anticipated to raise total productivity from the current 100 kg/ha to 300 kg/ha. These results would be achieved through integrated programmes which included more intensive culture systems for sea bass. Experiments on integrating clam and shrimp culture were also underway. It was noted that the results achieved by valliculture in northern Italy came from a region where this type of culture system is traditional, and where fish farmers have always invested to raise productivity.
2 Ente di Sviluppo Agricolo del Veneto.
However, bad weather and severe fluctuations in water temperature create many management difficulties and lower the economic profitability of valliculture in the area. Lagoons in southern Mediterranean regions could benefit from their more suitable weather conditions but probably need more capital investment to achieve efficient lagoon management.
An example was provided of the capital requirements needed to increase lagoon productivity. The information given was taken from a feasibility study of an integrated programme of intensive/extensive culture of the 100 ha Fusaro Lagoon, near Naples which was prepared in 1984 (Table 10). The project included public investments of US$ 2.3 million and private investments of a similar amount, resulting in a total capital investment of about US$ 46 000/ha. Total yield, considering public and private investments in a 30-year period, was 9.3%, while the cost/benefit ratio, at a 5% discount rate, was 1.56.
In subsequent discussions, many participants expressed their belief that intensive culture could cope with market price falls caused by increased production of sea bass and sea bream. Competitiveness could be achieved through decreases in costs mainly through reducing mortality rate in grow-out farms and hatcheries. Nevertheless margins cannot be expected to remain at current levels indefinitely. One participant predicted that margins would shrink in the future so that only those farms situated in the most suitable locations would be able to compete successfully.
Table 9: Production Costs and Revenue in a Traditional Extensive Valliculture System1
|
COSTS |
|
It.Lit/ha |
US$/ha |
|
|
(a) Seed Cost |
||||
|
|
Sea Bream (It.Lit. 1 200 x 200) |
240000 |
|
|
|
Sea Bass (It.Lit. 400 x 200) |
80000 |
|
|
|
|
Others (It.Lit. 100 x 1 000) |
100000 |
420000 |
301.52 |
|
|
(b) Feed Cost |
30000 |
21.54 |
||
|
(c) Other Costs |
||||
|
|
Rent |
300000 |
|
|
|
Labour |
250000 |
|
|
|
|
Miscellaneous |
150000 |
700000 |
502.53 |
|
|
Total Cost |
|
1150000 |
825.59 |
|
|
REVENUE |
||||
|
(a) Sea Bream (25 kg x It.Lit. 22 000) |
|
550000 |
394.85 |
|
|
(b) Sea Bass (25 kg x It.Lit. 25 000) |
|
625000 |
448.69 |
|
|
(c) Mullet (50 kg x It.Lit. 5 000) |
|
250000 |
179.47 |
|
|
|
|
1425000 |
1023.01 |
|
|
GROSS PROFIT |
|
275000 |
197.42 |
|
1 Additional revenue was obtained from hunting; this has been discounted here
Table 10: Investment required for and anticipated revenue from increased production in a 100 ha lagoon at Fusaro, near Naples, Italy
|
PUBLIC INVESTMENTS |
It.Lit. ('000 000) |
US$ ('000) | |
|
Inlet/outlet channel excavations |
160 |
|
|
|
Submarine piping |
1000 |
|
|
|
Bank building |
675 |
|
|
|
Inlet/outlet channel restoration |
1400 |
|
|
|
Total public investment |
|
3235 |
2322 |
|
PRIVATE INVESTMENTS | |||
|
Equipment |
470 |
|
|
|
Mussel fields |
70 |
|
|
|
Intensive fish farming |
2700 |
|
|
|
Total private investment |
|
3240 |
2326 |
|
Total Investments |
|
6475 |
4648 |
|
ANTICIPATED ANNUAL REVENUE | |||
|
Mussel farming |
|
120 |
86.15 |
|
Clam culture |
|
33 |
23.69 |
|
Extensive fish culture |
|
112 |
80.40 |
|
Intensive fish culture |
|
644 |
462.32 |
|
|
|
909 |
652.56 |
Participants felt that a more detailed study of the comparative costs of the different culture systems was necessary. Only then would intensive fish farmers know what minimal cost levels could be achieved by government subsidized extensive culture. This would enable forecasts to be made of whether intensive farming of sea bass and sea bream would remain economically feasible in the long term.
A number of non-market related constraints to the further expansion of sea bass/sea bream farming were mentioned by participants. Not all technical problems were solved and there was still room for research on specific aspects. Constraints mentioned included:
- Disease problems which were expected to increase with intensification of farming systems- Financing and insurance difficulties
- Site availability (in some countries)
- The need to improve grow-out technology in those countries with limited space for expansion using current methodology. This included applying 'open-sea cages' technology
- Legal problems
- Licensing difficulties
- The need for new hatcheries1
- Limited availability of 'free' information on technology which was being maintained on a proprietary basis by the pioneers.
1 It was stated that a total of 20 000 t per year would require 100 million fingerlings. Assuming an output of 2 million juveniles each this means there would need to be about 50 hatcheries to supply the demand; currently there are about 21 in the countries represented, with a maximum c.
