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FISHY CONCERNS: ARMENIAN HATCHERIES RESIST 'COSTLY' TECHNOLOGY
http://www.armenianow.com/economy/business/47168/armenia_fish_breeders_concerns
BUSINESS | 25.06.13 | 10:05
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow
By Gohar Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
While the government is trying to take steps to protect the country's
water resources, demanding that a 'semi-closed' water cycle mode by
used in fish farming, most fish-breeders claim it is an inefficient
and costly process that harms their businesses.
Still in late February the agriculture minister said that despite
being one of the country's promising sectors fish farming had serious
problems as far as water consumption was concerned. He then announced
plans for hatcheries to switch to new technologies that would solve
the problem of water management.
According to the minister, 'closed' and 'semi-closed' cycles were
planned for fish production at farms, which implies water saving
through multiple use of same water. In this regime used water is used
again with the application of special equipment and technologies.
In order to work under such regimes fish farms need to be equipped
with the newest technologies, such as special pumps, filters, oxygen
generating devices, other special means for regulating water
temperature and chemical composition, which entrepreneurs find quite
costly.
"In developed European countries they get up to 300-450 kilograms of
fish with the use of one cubic meter of water. In our country today it
is about 150 kilograms, which is a very low index," said the minister,
giving large, medium-sized and small fish farm, one, three and five
years, respectively, to introduce the new water-saving technologies.
But Armenian Fish Farmers Association NGO Artur Atoyan says that most
fish-breeders in Armenia are in poor financial condition and cannot
afford to introduce this technology yet.
"There are fish-farming enterprises that have accumulated a lot of
debt and can barely maintain their existence. And the modern
technology to be introduced is quite expensive, they are not for
[poor] countries like ours. We've heard that it is a very good thing,
but it won't be of use without adjustment to our local conditions,"
says Atoyan, adding that banks consider hatcheries and fish farms to
be a risky business and loan opportunities are limited in this area.
Fish farming in Armenia is mostly common in the Ararat and Armavir
regions of the country. Atoyan says still a few years ago Armenia had
234 fish-breeding enterprises, but 57 of them were recently shut down
and closures in this business continue.
Atoyan says he has information that 97 fisheries will be exempted from
the obligation to apply the 'semi-closed' cycle mode and will be
allowed to use alternative means, but a large number of them will
still face a dilemma.
"This technology requires an investment of one million euros, while 97
percent of fish farms in Armenia cannot afford it," says the head of
the Armenian Fish Farmers Association.
He also says that the use of closed cycle technologies will affect the
taste and quality of fish.
http://www.armenianow.com/economy/business/47168/armenia_fish_breeders_concerns
BUSINESS | 25.06.13 | 10:05
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow
By Gohar Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
While the government is trying to take steps to protect the country's
water resources, demanding that a 'semi-closed' water cycle mode by
used in fish farming, most fish-breeders claim it is an inefficient
and costly process that harms their businesses.
Still in late February the agriculture minister said that despite
being one of the country's promising sectors fish farming had serious
problems as far as water consumption was concerned. He then announced
plans for hatcheries to switch to new technologies that would solve
the problem of water management.
According to the minister, 'closed' and 'semi-closed' cycles were
planned for fish production at farms, which implies water saving
through multiple use of same water. In this regime used water is used
again with the application of special equipment and technologies.
In order to work under such regimes fish farms need to be equipped
with the newest technologies, such as special pumps, filters, oxygen
generating devices, other special means for regulating water
temperature and chemical composition, which entrepreneurs find quite
costly.
"In developed European countries they get up to 300-450 kilograms of
fish with the use of one cubic meter of water. In our country today it
is about 150 kilograms, which is a very low index," said the minister,
giving large, medium-sized and small fish farm, one, three and five
years, respectively, to introduce the new water-saving technologies.
But Armenian Fish Farmers Association NGO Artur Atoyan says that most
fish-breeders in Armenia are in poor financial condition and cannot
afford to introduce this technology yet.
"There are fish-farming enterprises that have accumulated a lot of
debt and can barely maintain their existence. And the modern
technology to be introduced is quite expensive, they are not for
[poor] countries like ours. We've heard that it is a very good thing,
but it won't be of use without adjustment to our local conditions,"
says Atoyan, adding that banks consider hatcheries and fish farms to
be a risky business and loan opportunities are limited in this area.
Fish farming in Armenia is mostly common in the Ararat and Armavir
regions of the country. Atoyan says still a few years ago Armenia had
234 fish-breeding enterprises, but 57 of them were recently shut down
and closures in this business continue.
Atoyan says he has information that 97 fisheries will be exempted from
the obligation to apply the 'semi-closed' cycle mode and will be
allowed to use alternative means, but a large number of them will
still face a dilemma.
"This technology requires an investment of one million euros, while 97
percent of fish farms in Armenia cannot afford it," says the head of
the Armenian Fish Farmers Association.
He also says that the use of closed cycle technologies will affect the
taste and quality of fish.