HUNGARY
Lillafüred Trout Farm has been producing since 1933
Recirculation systems could double output
T
oday, brown trout (Salmo trutta m. fario), rainbow trout (Onchorhynchus mykiss) and brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) are produced on the farm, which has a complete cycle of operations from hatchery to grow-out, processing, sales and marketing. The company sells fish at all stages to the market, including eggs, larvae, fry and fingerlings, but the main product is market-sized fish which, thanks to the very good rearing conditions including high quality spring water, is very tasty and with flesh of excellent consistency.
An attractive destination for tourists
In recent years the services offered by the farm have been developed further. This has been done partly Lillafüred Trout Farm
The farm is situated in the Garadna valley, a popular hiking destination
close to the resort town of Lillafüred, so tourists represent an important segment of the customers. Visitors can taste the freshly caught fish seasoned with eight different spices, coated in two kinds of flour and fried, or kept overnight in a marinade containing twelve spices and cold-smoked on beechwood. This service has been available at the farm each year from 1 May to 30 September since 1991. The season concludes with a five-day festival held traditionally in the first week of October which attracts many visitors. They can taste fish dishes, attend cultural programmes and learn about fish and aquaculture.
At the Lillafüred hatchery eggs, fingerlings and fry are produced for sale as well as for on-growing on the farm.
Lillafüred Trout Farm
The oldest trout breeding farm in Hungary, that of Lillafüred, has existed for over 85 years. Currently it is operated by a family-owned company, Hoitsy & Rieger Ltd. The farm raises several species of trout, including brown trout, which is produced mostly for restocking and rainbow trout which dominates food fish production. The history of the Lillafüred Trout Farm dates back to 1933 when eggs were imported first from Austria and then from Czechoslovakia. Production has not been interrupted since then.
At the farm’s processing facility located in a nearby village the fish are smoked or processed into ready-to-cook products.
to diversify income streams to reduce the potential risks of relying on a single source of revenue. In 2018 the company launched a fish restaurant some 500 metres from the farm, where visitors can dine throughout the year on fish dishes made from boneless fillets of not only of trout but also of common carp, sterlet, and catfish. At the processing factory located in a nearby village a range of kitchenready gutted and cleaned, marinated and smoked fish products, as well as pâtés are manufactured for sale to tourists visiting the farm. New items are introduced each year and products have won the award for best ready-made fish product at the National Agriculture and Food Exhibition and Fair in 2011, 2015 and 2017, an acknowledgement of the company’s philosophy that quality raw material and ingredients,
modern equipment, professional knowledge, conscientious work, and good management are key to manufacturing excellent-quality products, the reputation of which has drawn customers from across the country. In the future the plan is to supplement the existing products with a new range of refrigerated items.
One of the first recirculation systems in Hungary The investment in technology is not restricted to the processing plant but also includes the farm where, because of frequent droughts, the company decided to build a recirculation system in 2012, one of the first in Hungary to do so. This significantly reduces the need for fresh water
EUROFISH Magazine 1 / 2020
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