World Aquaculture December 2018

66 DECEMBER 2018 • WORLD AQUACULTURE • WWW.WA S.ORG properly and solutions should derive from co-management and collaborations between producers and government and among all marine aquaculture farmers. The industry is affected by several constraints. No hatchery exists in Albania and most of the fingerlings come from hatcheries located mainly in Greece. The local industry also lacks reliable feed suppliers. Fish feed is imported from Italy, France and Germany. Marketing andMarket Value According to preliminary data, EU production of seabass rose by 10 percent in 2015 and seabream production fell by 4 percent (EUMOFA 2017). Industry reports indicate a significant increase in produced seabream volumes in the Mediterranean since 2015, stimulated by high market prices in 2014 and 2015 (Kontali 2017). The increase in harvest volumes explains a significant drop in 2017 prices for seabream. Albanian production was not influenced by these market variations because the production differences between European seabass and gilthead seabream remained the same from 2015 to 2017. Albanian production represents only 1 percent of the total volume and value of EU production. Most of the marine fish produced in Albania is exported to Italy, France, Poland and Germany directly by farming companies or wholesalers. Italy is the biggest importer from Albanian companies, which export both species mainly as fresh fish. The Alb-Adriatico 2013 company has finished the construction of a new packing house in the first quarter of 2017, following the norms, regulations and standards for hygiene and sanitation of the EU. The materials and equipment are of the latest technologies available in the market today, manufactured in Germany and Italy. It represents one of the Albanian companies exporting certified, 350-400 g gilthead seabream and European seabass to the EU. Greek seabass and seabream exports in 2016 were 7 percent above the 2010 level for seabass, while 18 percent below for seabream, meaning the average for the two species was down 10 percent (EUMOFA 2017). At the same time, Turkish exports to Italy in 2016 was 144 percent and 350 percent above the 2010 level for seabass and seabream, respectively (EUMOFA 2017). It is very difficult for Albanian companies to compete with companies in neighboring countries that have had long experience with floating cage farms. A model for Albania is a less experienced country like Croatia, where European seabass almost doubled in value and totaled €29 million and gilthead seabream value increased 32 percent, reaching €26 million after just one year (EUMOFA 2017). The maximummarket value of Albanian gilthead seabream represents 17 percent of the market value of this species in Croatia. The maximummarket value of Albanian European seabass represents 11 percent of the market value of this species in Croatia. In 2015, the value of gilthead seabream and European seabass reached a ten-year peak at €449 million and €409 million, respectively (EUMOFA 2017). The maximal market value (€5.2 million) of gilthead seabream represents 1.2 percent of the total EU market value of gilthead seabream, while the maximal market value of European seabass (€2.8 million) represents 0.7 percent of the total EU market value of European seabream. Based on an average price of €4.20/kg for gilthead seabream and €4.50/kg for European seabass in 28 EU countries (FAO 2017), the average market value of gilthead seabream grown in Albania (€3.1 ± 2.1 million) is 1.9 times greater than the market value of European seabass (€1.6 ± 1.2 million). The total value Albanian total marine finfish aquaculture is €4.7 ± 3.4 million. The average market value of the sold total marine aquaculture fresh fish from Vlora (€3.5 ± 2.3 million) is 2.7 times higher than the average market value of Saranda and Himara production (€1.3 ± 1.6 million). Regulatory Environment and Marine Spatial Planning Albania has been a candidate to join the EU since 2004 but is not yet a member. Exclusion from EU membership has had a major influence on the sustainable development and level of informality characterizing marine aquaculture in Albania, which is not regulated by the EU but by Albanian laws and regulations. In 2016, the parliament of Albania approved a Law on Aquaculture that is based on several EU regulations and directives. It emphasizes the establishment of suitable areas for the development of marine aquaculture, termed Allocated Zones for Aquaculture (AZAs) (Sanches-Jerez et al . 2015), in which aquaculture has secured use and priority over other activities and where potential adverse environmental impacts and negative interactions with other users are minimized or avoided. In contrast to the past 15 years, when there were no reported negative interactions with the tourism sector, it is rapidly increasing in the areas where floating cage farms are present. Efforts to FIGURE 4. Total production volume of gilthead seabream and European seabass in Albania from 2004-2017 FIGURE 3. Production volume of gilthead seabream and European seabass in Saranda and Himara from 2004-2017 (left) and the proportion of total production represented by these two species (right).