The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, has highlighted aquaculture as a "fundamental piece" to ensure global food security and reinforce the food autonomy of the European Union, thanks to the "maximum nutritional excellence" of the products it generates.
Planas spoke this Monday at the opening of the XX National Aquaculture Congress, which is taking place these days at the Afundación headquarters in Vigo, an event that was also attended by the Minister of the Sea, Marta Villaverde, and the mayor of Vigo, Abel Caballero.
In his speech, the head of Agriculture criticized the "false debate" about the supposed differences between farmed fish and shellfish and those caught at sea. He emphasized that aquaculture foods contain the same essential fatty acids and other nutrients as those from extractive fishing, in addition to having a "very reduced" carbon footprint and "very high" water use efficiency ratios.
The minister pointed out that, currently, aquaculture already accounts for just over half of the fish products consumed on the planet. "At this moment, it is not just an alternative, but a way of producing aquatic foods," he emphasized.
Despite this, he specified that, within the global volume, the European Union barely reaches just over 1%, with 1.2 million tons annually, while Spain concentrates around 23% of community production, with more than 240,000 tons and more than 50 different species.
Planas underlined the decisive role of science and research in achieving these production levels and called for maintaining that path of growth. In this context, he advocated for the central government's aid to the sector and the effort to attract more funds from the European Union.
For her part, the Minister of the Sea, Marta Villaverde, thanked the Spanish Aquaculture Society for choosing Galicia as the venue for the 20th edition of the Congress and highlighted the importance of incorporating the consumer's perspective, in order to understand how society perceives aquaculture and to be able to improve based on that experience.
Villaverde reiterated the Xunta's support for aquaculture companies and alluded to the work of regional research centers, aimed at innovating and continuing to generate wealth in the territory.
Return to origins and weight of Galicia
The president of the Spanish Aquaculture Society, Cristina Tomás Almenar, was in charge of opening the round of speeches, highlighting the return of the Congress to Galicia, where it was first held in O Grove (Pontevedra) in 1985, and which this year takes place under the slogan "RETURN TO THE ORIGINS".
Tomás Almenar recalled the relevance of the Galician Community in the aquaculture field, especially in the cultivation of mussels, oysters, clams, turbot, and many other species.
For the president, scientific knowledge and innovation are "decisive" for facing the challenges that aquaculture currently faces.
From the organization of the event, Carlos Pereira announced that representatives from more than 400 institutions will participate over the next few days. At the same time, he emphasized the need to "walk hand in hand" with society, which is the one that must know the work done in the sector to be able to bring a product of "the future" to the table.
The mayor of Vigo, Abel Caballero, also attended the inauguration, where he expressed his satisfaction at hosting this Congress in the city. In his speech, he highlighted the essential role of aquaculture in supplying marine food to citizens. "Aquaculture is part of the solution," he stated.
Caballero highlighted Vigo's historical connection with this activity, recalling the presence of rafts in its estuaries for decades and the sector's ability to adapt to new times through innovation and research.
Recognition to Manuel Barange
After the institutional speeches, the Congress paid tribute to the Director of Fisheries and Aquaculture of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), Manuel Barange, for his career and contributions to the development of aquaculture.
Barange received the first award granted by the event's organization and emphasized that, despite having been at the FAO for 11 years, he "remains a scientist." "Science is what is worthwhile," he remarked in his brief speech, before starting the first of the presentations scheduled for the afternoon.