Hassan Salehi made the remark at the inauguration of Iran-France Fisheries Day Conference held at the Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture of Iran on Saturday, while noting France’s long-standing cooperation with Iran in the field of fisheries.
“Providing high-quality eyed eggs, equipment for improving water quality and wastewater treatment as well as developing consumer market are the main requirements for the continuation of developing fisheries industry and a part of these requirements are currently being covered by French companies,” Salehi said.
Aquaculture growth rate in Iran is much higher than the average growth rate of the agricultural sector and even the growth rate of food production, he added.
According to him, farmed fish production increased from 125,000 tons in 2004 to 415,000 tons in 2015 which indicates more than tripling of production. He went on to add that by including the fish caught in national, extra-territorial and international waters, the country’s total aquaculture production stands at over one million tons in 2015.
Over 40 percent of the country's freshwater aquaculture is comprised of cold-water fish (salmon). Iran ranks first in the world by producing 140,000 tons of salmons, he said.
Iran-France Fisheries Day Conference was held today in Tehran with the presence of French ambassador François Sénémaud and representatives from 16 French fisheries companies.
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