Radio Havana Cuba's Science, Technology and Environment Program:
BREAKTHROUGHFor broadcast Sunday, July 9, 2000
Written and narrated by Arnaldo "Arnie" Coro, RHC's Science Editor
Hello, and welcome to our Science, Technology and the Environment update. I am Arnaldo, Arnie, Coro, RHC's science editor, and it's my pleasure to share with you the next five minutes of air time. Today, I'll tell you about catfish, and how the Cuban aquaculture experts have now succesfully adapted this very productive fresh water species to our climate.
Catfish is one of the most delicious dishes served at restaurants around the world. Among the outstanding characteristics of this species is that they adapt very well to aquaculture or, in layperson's terms, fish farming. Catfish are grown in many countries nowadays, as they provide a very high yield to the aquaculture farms. But according to Cuban icthiologists, the catfish is a delicate animal that requires appropriate water temperatures, great care and adequate food. The quality of the water is also extremely important including, of course, the amount of oxygen available.
Catfish cannot be raised together with other species if you really want to obtain high yields, so that's why fish farms that specialize in their production do not allow any other fresh water species in their tanks. Cuba has very good know-how of "extensive" aquaculture; that is, taking fresh water fish of a small size grown at nurseries to reservoirs and just letting them grow and develop with whatever natural food supply is available... again the name for this procedure is "extensive aquaculture," meaning human intervention exists only at the time the reservoir is provided with a load of small fish to let them grow, and again at the time that the actual fishing is done to collect whatever yield was possible under those conditions.
But extensive aquaculture is not possible with catfish and other highly profitable species... with them, "intensive aquaculture" is the only way to go... there is no choice but to build special tanks, provide aeration, control the quality of the water, and feed the fish artificially, using especially formulated food. So intensive aquaculture, as you might expect, is much more expensive, but at the same time, production yields are many times higher, and the quality of the fish meat sent to the marketplace is competitive with any other dish. Catfish grown so far here in Cuba under intensive aquaculture procedures are gaining weight at a very good rate, and they taste really good.
So far, the small experimental production is purchased by several hotels in foreign currency, and the fishing industry is looking forward to providing the tourist trade with whatever quantities it will demand in the future. Profits obtained from sales in foreign currency of catfish and aquaculture shrimp are used to further develop the production of high quality fish protein from other less exotic species that are sold at subsidized prices to the population.
And this was Breakthrough for today, how the Cuban fishing industry is developing intensive aquaculture of the catfish species. Will like to have you listening here at this same time and frequency next week for another edition of our Science, Technology and the Environment update. I am Arnaldo, Arnie, Coro, now wishing you excellent reception of our next program.
prepared 9 July; received 11 July, 2000
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"Breakthrough"
Radio Havana Cuba
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