TURKEY
Agromey concentrates on whole or gutted seabass and seabream, and ďŹ llets
Doing a few things, but doing them well Agromey is among the largest producers of seabass and seabream in Turkey with an annual production capacity of 15,000 tonnes. The company, like other big producers, is integrated with its own feed production division, ďŹ sh cultivation, processing, packaging and distribution.
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ome years ago Agromey invested in a former ferry vessel which was converted into a packaging facility. The vessel is in Karaburun near Izmir moored off a reserve, a protected area, where the building of permanent structures is forbidden. Agriculture is small scale and the main activity is herding animals. As a result the sea around the reserve is not polluted by run-off from the land. It is in these surroundings that Agromey has one of its cage sites for on-growing seabass and seabream.
Short transport time from cages to packaging facility The presence of the cages in the vicinity was the reason behind deciding to moor the converted ferry off the reserve as well. The proximity to the cages means that fish can be harvested and brought to the packaging facility very rapidly. This short transport time has a positive impact on the quality of the product and ultimately its shelf life, a vital parameter for the producer of any highly perishable product. The packaging facility works seven days in the week grading and packaging the fish, says Sorgun Uluc, the chief of production planning, Employees work in two shifts and get a day in the week off, which they take in turns. www.eurofishmagazine.com
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There is however no filleting or other more advanced processing operation on board the vessel. Those are performed at another facility in Aydin another city a couple of hours inland from Karaburun. What gets sent to the two processing plants depends on the orders and the customers’ requirements. Orders for whole round fish are handled at the packaging vessel where the fish is graded, packaged, loaded into the truck and sent directly to the customer. Fillets or frozen products are processed at the Aydin facility. In general the ratio of whole round fish to processed fish is approximately 60:40 for both seabass and seabream. The entire production is from the company’s own cages. Agromey’s cages are located at two sites, one in Karaburun and the other in Bodrum, further to the south. There are a few differences in the two sites. The sea at the Bodrum site warms up faster after the winter, then it does in Karaburun. Although water temperature is only one factor in determining fish growth, fish at the Bodrum site tend to grow slightly faster. The weather conditions at the two sites are also different. Many companies have their operations in Bodrum so the distance between the farms is not as great as it is in Izmir. Also, in Izmir the cages are
in the open sea, while in Bodrum the sites are in more sheltered bays. These factors sometimes have an impact on the water quality in Bodrum. Having cages in the open sea means they are more exposed to the elements, they are further away from the coast and they require more maintenance, all of which tends to add to the cost of production. So, there are advantages and disadvantages to both locations. At both Agromey’s sites in Karaburun and Bodrum there are cages with seabass and others with seabream, which are harvested depending on the orders and size of the fish in the cages. The mix of seabass and seabream is not even, about 60 of the production is seabass.
Grading 75 tonnes of fish a day Although the Karaburun facility is essentially a converted vessel, it is capable of grading up to 75 tonnes of fish a day. This level was reached recently with the installation of new machinery that doubled the capacity. There are now two grading lines instead of one and actual production is currently 60-65 tonnes a day. But we are planning to use the entire capacity once we have a few additional workers, says Eray Yapici, the production manager. The plant at Aydin produces about 8 tonnes of fillets a day. The logistics of the production are optimised to keep the amount of time
Eray Yapici, production manager and Sorgun Uluc, chief of production planning, on board the processing facility, a converted vessel anchored at Karaburun. Eurofish Magazine 5/ 2015
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