INFOPESCA Internacional 26

“First, we need general conditions; only then, we could face some regional agreements” An interview with Gerardo Nieto, Under Secretary of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Argentina
This is a another part of the interview series to national authorities in member countries. Gerardo Nieto already had some experience in fisheries management. In fact, his last political jobs were related to this business in the province where he comes from. His points of view, responsabilities, his rol as a decision maker, a critical look to the past and the country’s future plans in terms of fishery management were addressed during the interview.

“Randiá” catfish breeding in Argentina. Growth comparission between two different wild-origin lines
By Gustavo Wicki, F. Rossi, S. Martin and L.Luchini
The culture of silurid catfishes for human consumption has been steadily increasing worldwide, specially during the last few years. Some rural producers in Argentina have showed strong interest in resuming this activity, and they rapidly found some support from the government, through the Aquaculture Division. The product has today its own comercial name (“randiá”) and looks very promising, in terms of both production and trading. Many aspects of its culture are addressed in this article, in special the compared reproduction rates.

Culture of oysters from the Colombian Caribbean. A feasable alternative
By Horacio Rodríguez-Gómez y Ricardo Álvarez-León
Given its taste, appeareance and nutritional value, oysters have been for centuries a preferred food in many fishing towns in the world. A number of species are cultured in countries like Japan, China, France, Spain, United States, Mexico, Cuba, Chile and recently, Colombia. The authors present a bibliograph review on the production characteristics of a typical oyster species in the Colombian Caribbean, focusing on its yield and trading potential.

Skin disease linked to handling shrimp (2nd part)
By Miguel Pizzorno
The previous issue of Infopesca Internacional presented an articles related to occupational disease linked to handling shrimp. They were mainly due to infectious agents. In the present article, another author gives its long experience regarding the same issue, but oriented torwards the first cause of the problem, while also provides some preventing solutions, which will result in less suffering to labourers and in low economical losses as well.

Organic aquaculture a marketing opportunity for developing countries
by Tarlochan Singh
Organic foods including organic aquaculture products are becoming more popular among consumers nowadays. While there is a growing market for organic seafoods in USA, Europe and Japan, quite a number of countries are already involved in organic seafood production, taking advantage of their natural conditions. The growing demand for such products which also command higher prices represents an opportunity for developing countries to take advantage and earn higher income. While the author focuses on the Indian case, the succesful experiencie and its potential for a further growth could be applied in many other countries and regions.