EXPERT TOPIC
EELS
EXPERT TOPIC
EELS
US $1 billion dollars a year market
by Matt Holmes, Features editor, International Aquafeed
E
el farming is worth over US $1 billion dollars a year, with eel farms producing around 60 percent of all eel meat consumed. European and Scandinavian countries along with China, Taiwan, Australia and Morocco all produce eels with the largest single producer being Japan. Eels are fish known for their round, slender and elongated bodies. They are a carnivorous, long-living species that spend most of their life in fresh water but return to the sea to breed. Eels live in the fresh waters of rivers and streams and only breeds once during their lives. On average, young eels live for up to 12 years for males and up to 18 years for the females with some species reaching greater ages. Species of eels include: The Longfin eel (Anguilla reinhardtii) and the Shortfin eel (Anguilla australis) which are found in brackish and fresh waters of Australia and New Zealand. These are the most commonly farmed species in the countries European Eel (Anguilla Anguilla) is found in fresh and brackish water in the UK, Ireland, Mediterranean, Northern Africa the Baltic Sea, and Iceland up to mid-Norway American eel (Anguilla rostrata) is found in brackish and fresh water on the eastern side of the United States, the south- east of Canada and the Gulf of Mexico Japanese eel (Anguilla japonica) is most common in the fresh and brackish waters of Japan, Korea, China and Taiwan. As they reach sexual maturity the pigment in the skin of the eel becomes silvery, they put on weight and migrate miles out into the seas to find the spawning grounds to breed. The fertilised eggs are carried by the ocean current as they change into larvae, after around 18 months they have developed into ‘glass eels’. These are juvenile eels that have an under-developed, transparent appearance. When the glass eels reach two-to-three years old, the ocean currents carry them towards the shores. Their pigmentation becomes darker and they resemble adult eels, only much smaller at around 8-20 cm in length. These young eels are called elvers. They must migrate further up into the fresh water rivers to feed and grow for some years, beginning the cycle once more. The farms begin by sourcing stock, usually obtained by purchasing the wild, glass eels which are sold on and used to replenish the stock on the farms. Once the juvenile eels reach the glass eel stage of development, they are much closer to the shores and can be captured in nets. The young eels, sometimes called fingerlings, are sold and brought to the farms to restock the supply. It is important for them to be quarantined for several weeks and carefully inspected for any signs of pest or disease.
48 | March 2019 - International Aquafeed