MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Squid: good season kick off in Argentina

The squid jigger fleet s initial catches lend a positive outlook for the 2007 season.

Since the commencement of the squid harvest (Illex argentinus), this past 1 February, high performances of the resource have been registered in the area located south to the parallel 44° South.

"The resource made its appearance. There were vessels carrying 20 tonnes per day. It would seem that the fishing is doing pretty well," assured a source from the business sector consulted by the Pescare portal. The squid jigger fleets' first catches project a good and encouraging season for 2007, and some vessel owners even forecast a level of landings upwards of that registered last year in Argentine ports, which rose to 290,938.4 tonnes, according to data contributed by the Secretariat of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food (SAGPyA). However, the government appeared to be more cautious when hearing of the initial catche volumes so far this squid season. "We have information that allows us to expect a good year; but we are talking about a very volatile species. One must also consider the price problem," explained the subsecretary of Fishery of the Province of Buenos Aires, Oscar Fortunato. The industrial sector is worried mainly about the international market and the abundance of squid stocks. Moreover, there could be a decrease in the resource prices in all its presentations, including whole, in tubes and/or shells, tentacles, and fins. With regards to the appearance of new foreign niches, an entrepreneur from Mar del Plata, Antonio Solimeno said "beyond Spain [the main buyer of Argentine products], we have to open up to new markets; if not, this could be a complicated year." Several Mar del Plata chambers pf commerce are carrying out negotiations to increase the access of Argentine squid to Japan, despite that they still register a high import duty. Furthermore, during the past year, the National Food Health and Quality Service (SENASA) registered Japan imported six per cent of the total squid exported from Argentina, upwards of 10,172 tonnes with a value close to USD 10 million.(FIS)