LITHUANIA
Islauzo Zuvis, a pond fish farm dedicated to production the natural way
Balancing the interests of nature with those of commerce Located in Prienai some 100 km west of Vilnius, Islauzo Zuvis is a traditional pond farm producing a number of species of freshwater fish. The pond surface area is about 500 hectares of which about 100 ha is used for organic production.
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mong the 19 species produced are Siberian sturgeon and bester, a hybrid of beluga and sterlet, as well as trout in limited quantities. Common carp however dominates the production at over 80 of the total, while all the other species together make up the remainder. These include the Asian carps, i.e. bighead carp, grass carp, and silver carp. Altogether, 11 species are produced commercially.
Fish sold in a variety of formats Darius Svirskis, the director of the company, is passionate about the natural production of fish. Although the majority of the production is conventional the difference between that and the organic production lies mainly in the fact that the feed for the latter is certified organic. The other conditions are all the same, he says. In terms of
content the conventional feed is the same as the organic feed, but without the certification. In addition to farming fish, the company also processes its production. Hot and cold smoking are the main ways of processing, but since the facility was established the company has found that there is also demand for fresh fish in the form of cleaned fish and fillets on ice. In addition to being distributed through retail outlets, the processed production is sold through the company’s two shops, one of which is located next to the processing facility and close to the farming ponds. Here, a tank holding live fish is also present for customers who prefer this highly traditional way of buying fish. The fish are caught, placed in a plastic bag, weighed and handed over to the customer. While live fish used to be the only way to buy farmed carp and other cultured species, today things have changed, and customers often have neither the
Nineteen species of fish are grown on the farm, 11 of them commercially. 38
Darius Svirskis, managing partner of Islauzo Zivis, a pond fish farming and processing company.
time nor the skills to deal with live fish.
Organic production of fish since 2014 Mr Svirskis has a long history in the fish farming business. He was previously working at another large fish farm, one that had existed as a cooperative prior to the political changes in the 90s. Then, in 2003 he was asked to help manage a farm that was financially distressed. This was the start of Islauzo Zuvis. Initially, annual production was 5 tonnes, last year, however, it reached 850 tonnes and in 2017 he is expecting it to touch 1,000 tonnes. While this would give a
productivity of around 2 tonnes per ha, the organic production tends to reduce the average as there are limits on the density that is permitted in the ponds. Although an ichthyologist by training Mr Svirskis had to learn about fish farming when he took over the farm. To do this he travelled to Hungary, the Czech Republic, and even Israel, seeking knowledge and inspiration. While the farm itself was in reasonably good shape, when he took it over, and did not require much in terms of renovation, the organic ponds are something new that Mr Svirskis started in 2014 as much out of personal conviction as commercial considerations. Here the entire cycle is organic starting
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08/06/17 6:24 pm