ITALY
A new location would benefit Chioggia fish market
Better road transport links are important for growth The fish market at Chioggia is one of the biggest in the region. Transport bottlenecks constrain its expansion and the authorities would like to move it to an area that is better connected to the road network.
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hioggia, a port on the east coast of Italy 50 km south of Venice is home to one of the biggest fish markets in the north Adriatic, an area comprised of the three regions Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Veneto, and Emilia-Romagna. In fact, in terms of volumes of fish sold, the Chioggia market is the biggest, but by value the Venice seafood market exceeds it by a significant margin. Chioggia is a historical fishing port and the seafood market has existed since 1960. It is placed right in the centre of Chioggia, which, as Andrea Venerucci the director of the market, explains is a mixed blessing. The centre of Chioggia is an island, so for the fishing vessels the market is positioned very favourably; the vessels dock a few meters away and within minutes the fish can be brought to the market. Transporting the fish from the market to the highway is another matter however as the trucks have to drive through the town where the roads are very narrow and crowded particularly in summer when there are also vast numbers of tourists. The local municipality would therefore like to move the market to another location that is more favourably positioned with respect to the highway. 48
Eurofish Magazine 2 / 2016
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Turnover at the market moves higher Despite having been discussed for several years the market has not yet moved and in the meantime there are other issues that need to be addressed. Between 2010 and 2012 turnover at the market shrank by a fifth to EUR37m while the volume of fish sold decreased by 17 to 9,000 tonnes. Dr Venerucci attributes these developments to problems with the weather, changes in legislation, fuel price increases, the economic crisis, and the reduction in spending power. Since then however the situation has been improving; in 2015 turnover crept up to EUR40m and volumes increased to 13,000 tonnes. If more boats landed their fish at Chioggia it would probably attract more buyers and give the market a boost. Part of the problem seems to be the extreme fragmentation. The three regions of the north Adriatic have no less than 13 markets – along a distance of some 400 km. Many of them are tiny. The market in Caorle in Veneto had a turnover in 2014 of EUR1m on volumes of 207 tonnes. In total the thirteen markets had a turnover of EUR154m. Remove the two top performers, Venice and
Andrea Venerucci, director of the seafood market in Chioggia
Chioggia, and the remaining 11 markets had a combined turnover of EUR60m on volumes of 20,000 tonnes. Apart from the fragmentation, regulations and traditions commit the fishers to selling their catches at their own port’s market even if prices are better at a neighbouring market. Vessels from Chioggia, for example, that land at Ancona send the fish by road to the market in Chioggia to sell it there. Attracting vessels from other countries is not possible as the distances are too great to make it worthwhile for Croatian or Slovenian vessels to land fish at Italian ports. Instead the fish is sent by road to be sold at Italian markets.
Fish is landed within hours of being caught Improved transport in and out of the market may thus help both the supply to the market and the demand, which explains why Dr Venerucci is keen on shifting the market. Fish sold at Chioggia is also exported, for example, to Germany, as for German buyers Chioggia is three to four hours closer than say, Ancona. The vessels have a tradition of spending less than a day at sea so that the fish is typically landed within a few hours of being caught. This ensures the quality and gives the product a longer shelf life. Some vessels are also investing in ice-making machinery www.eurofishmagazine.com
05/04/16 11:12 AM