Ramazan Özkaya, President of the Fisheries Cooperative, made statements regarding the fish sector, which has been on the agenda with the pollution and mucilage incidents in the seas in recent years.
Özkaya underlined that if there is no regulation, the fishing industry and access to fish will be difficult and called.
Özkaya said that according to statistics, there has been a decrease in fish stock in the last 10 years,
"About 150 thousand tons of fish were lost in the seas. It fell from 500 thousand tons to 350 thousand tons. It's going down. We must first bring the collapse in stock to the horizontal level. After 2040, we may not find the desired fish in the seas," he said.
“PRICE IS NOT AFFECTED IF THERE WILL BE A QUOTA”
Expressing that fishermen limit the fish they catch according to the size of the boat, Özkaya stated that small fish are not caught in this way.
"A trust has been given to you, do not betray this trust, leave fish for future generations, young people are escaping from the fish business, escaping from farming. Some boats can catch a thousand tons of fish 60 meters at a time. If there is a quota, the price will not be affected as the same fish will come almost every day. Starting from anchovy with priority according to boat lengths, quota should be applied," he added.
“CITIZENS EXPECT THE FISH TO COME LOTS TO BUY IT CHEAP”
Expressing that there is an abundance of anchovy this year, Özkaya underlined that the supply-demand balance has deteriorated.
"Anchovy is plentiful this year, but there is no supply-demand balance. Fish is sold for no money. But if you bring the fish with a quota, the customer of this fish is ready, we used to buy 1 kg of fish, we used to buy 3.4 kg of meat, now 1 kg of meat is able to buy 3 kg of fish. Citizens are waiting for the fish to come a lot in order to buy cheap," Özkaya said.
“MUSILAGE KILLED EVERYTHING IN THE SEA”
Referring to how the environmental problems in the sea affect fisheries, Özkaya stated that the mucilage disaster, which has been on the agenda recently, has affected the fish existence.
"There is a lot of anchovy in Marmara, but mucilage has a great effect on us. Mucilage killed whatever was in the sea, killed the mussel, killed the starfish, so fishing is not possible. Mucilage negatively affects sea creatures and fishing becomes impossible in these regions," Özkaya added.
CALL FOR SOLUTIONS TO FUEL COSTS AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS
Noting that there are many expense items in the field of fishing, Özkaya called for an adjustment in diesel prices.
Özkaya reminded that the fishermen were given diesel without SCT for a period and said that this opportunity should be re-established.
Özkaya called for steps to be taken to solve the high diesel costs and environmental problems.