Mustafa Altuğ Atalay, General Director of Fisheries and Aquaculture of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, said the following to AA reporter Gökhan Güçiklüoğlu about the salmon grown in Sinop; “With the Turkish salmon project we developed 8-10 years ago, the fertile waters of the Black Sea, especially Sinop, have become the base of Turkish salmon. Around 66 thousand tons of Turkish salmon have been grown in the Black Sea as of 2023.” – “We do not plan to increase production much in 2024. “We plan to expand existing production, feed our people at optimum prices and export.”
Atalay told the AA correspondent that Turkey has carried out very successful work in aquaculture in recent years. Pointing out that there were periods when Turkey was a little behind other countries in salmon production, Atalay explained that salmon production in the Black Sea was increased with the correct policies implemented by the ministry. Emphasizing that they have now become a country that has a say in the world in salmon production, Atalay continued as follows: “Our country is an important aquaculture and fishing country surrounded by seas on three sides. Both our hunters and producers are doing very successful work in hunting and production. We are the first in the world in sea bass and sea bream. In trout We are second in the world, but we had some shortage in the field of salmon. With the Turkish salmon project we developed as ministry policies 8-10 years ago, the fertile waters of the Black Sea, especially Sinop, have become the base of Turkish salmon by 2023. “Salmon was grown. Most of it went to export, and it is consumed with pleasure in the domestic market. Although it is superior or equal to imported fish in terms of quality, it is sold at half the price.”
We must also take care of the balance in the world with optimum prices.
Pointing out that the Ministry plans for Turkish salmon by taking into account the supply and demand balance, as in other products, Atalay said, “One of the important projects of our Ministry is production planning. As in vegetable production and red meat, within the scope of production planning in fisheries, we must also take into account the balance in the world with optimum prices without producing too much.” “We do not plan to increase production too much in 2024. We plan to spread the existing production, feed it to our people at optimum prices and export it, because we have to plan both external balances and domestic consumption when producing fish.” he said. Atalay stated that the entire Black Sea is suitable for fish farming, but Sinop is different from other places in terms of its geographical structure and said: “Sinop is the extreme point of our country, one of our most beautiful regions. Its sea is also beautiful and extremely productive. The Black Sea Every part of the region is fertile, but considering the geography and current structure, our Ministry conducted a study. As a result of two years of study, we determined that this is one of the best places to raise fish in the Black Sea. We have created extremely environmentally friendly coastal areas. “We had fish production facilities established in Sinop, 4-5 kilometers offshore, using superior technology. We had the opportunity to raise extremely valuable Turkish salmon, which we have been able to sell to the world without any environmental problems.”
