Turkey
In 2022, Turkey produced 514,823 tons of aquaculture products. Turkish aquaculture is dominated by finfish production in both freshwater and marine environments. Rainbow trout, seabream, and seabrass compose 95 percent of finfish produced. The majority of production, 98 percent, comes from intensive farming systems.
A deeper dive:
-
Aquaculture in Turkey began with rainbow trout and common carp farming in the late 1960s and developed further with gilthead seabream and European seabass culture in the mid-1980s.
-
Rainbow trout is mainly consumed locally, while roughly 75 percent of seabass and seabream are exported to EU countries.
-
Public support, fish demand, and cheap labour are the sector's major strengths, while poor species and product diversity, resource use conflicts, water availability, and increasing environmental and animal welfare issues are limiting factors.
-
The aquaculture sector employs roughly 12000 Turks.
-
Turkey has 15 feed manufacturers with an annual production of over 4000 tonnes.
-
Turkey’s aquaculture is mainly based on intensive finfish culture; extensive and semi-intensive aquaculture is limited to mussel and common carp production.
-
Marine fish farming is mostly operated by large private enterprises, with local communities rarely being involved.
-
Researchers are warning that the current finfish farming system is ultimately unsustainable because it takes 5.7 kilograms of caught fish to cultivate 1 kilogram of sea bream.
-
Freshwater trout farming is distributed across the country and is valuable for rural economic development.
Videos:
Salmon Success: Turkey makes a splash with salmon exports
Growing the Business of Growing Fish - Sustainable Aquaculture in Turkey
Turkish Seafood Industry Introduction | Turkish Tastes Series Event #2
