ITALY
Agro Ittica Lombarda is best known for sturgeon caviar, but has other products too
A unique sensory experience The Italian aquaculture sector has a long history starting ďŹ rst in the coastal lagoons and then, as technology became available, expanding both inland and along the coast. While the freshwater production of trout is in terms of volume by far the most important, other freshwater species such as sturgeon and eels are also produced in signiďŹ cant volumes.
Farming seven varieties of sturgeon The Agro Ittica group has two facilities about 10 km apart as well as interests in a trout farming facility in the neighbourhood of Milan. The sturgeon farming is split between the two facilities, with white sturgeon, A. baerii (Siberian sturgeon), and small volumes of beluga being farmed at one and Adriatic sturgeon, A. gueldenstaedtii (Danube sturgeon or osietra), and A. stellatus (starry sturgeon or sevruga) being farmed at the other. In addition the company produces A. ruthenus (sterlet). www.eurofishmagazine.com
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Agro Ittica Lombarda
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mong the main producers of sturgeon for caviar and meat is the company Agro Ittica Lombarda. Based in Brescia to the east of Milan, the company was established in the 70’s when it started as an eel farm. It was the owners of a steel mill in Calvisano, Brescia who realised that the surplus heat generated by the mill could be used with a heat exchanger to warm the water to farm eel. Experiments were also conducted with other species that needed warm water to grow including channel catfish and hybrid striped bass. But the fish that showed the most promise was the sturgeon, no doubt partly because three species of sturgeon, Acipenser naccarii (Adriatic sturgeon), A. sturio (European sturgeon), and Huso huso (Beluga), used to be found in the wild in the region.
The farming site is spread over 60 ha and comprises a hatchery, on-growing ponds and a processing facility. The steel mill that provides the heat can be seen faintly in the background.
The different species of sturgeon enable the company to offer a palate of products originating from the different fish. Mario Pazzaglia, the Head of Special Projects and Scientific External Relations, says that the caviar from each species of sturgeon has its own sensorial characteristics and customers can taste the different varieties and decide which they prefer. The heat produced by the neighbouring steel plant is used to warm the water in the hatchery. Once the sturgeons are released into the bigger ponds the water is warmed naturally by the sun. Temperature change has an important physiological impact on sturgeons as without it the maturation of the fish is not optimal, says Dr Pazzaglia.
Dr Mario Pazzaglia, Head of Special Projects and Scientific External Relations, Agro Ittica Lombarda
Lowering the temperature to promote maturation is a process called vernalisation. In fact it is impossible for the sturgeon to reproduce if the temperature
is stable, he adds. The water is sourced from a spring, which has several advantages. It maintains a constant temperature of 13 degrees, is of very high quality Eurofish Magazine 2 / 2016
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05/04/16 11:13 AM