Summary of newspapers of the previous day – 22. 1. 2009

Minister Gandalovič discussed future of aquaculture with representatives of European Parliament

The Minister of Agriculture Petr Gandalovič stamped start of discussion on future of aquaculture as one of main priorities of Czech presidency in the area of fishery. On Wednesday he met with representatives of the Committee of European Parliament for Fishing in Brussels. The minister emphasized that the aquaculture concerns all EU states, no matter if they deal with freshwater or sea aquaculture. The representatives crosswise the political spectrum agreed with Gandalovič that the aquaculture is the future.

Gooseberry growing has ended in Czech Republic. There is no interest in it

Czech fruit-growers gave up growing gooseberry. The market is not interested in fruit which was mainly exported in past. Last year growers for the first time in history recorded zero in a cell of gooseberry harvest. 20 years ago, they harvested as much as about 1000 tons yearly. Than this fruit production go still down to the year before last´s nine tons. Gooseberry is grown further only in gardens. “Before 1989 gooseberry was a welcomed resource of foreign exchange for then economy. Also gardeners grew often gooseberry in plenty from whom the state buy it out on a large scale and subsequently it exported”, a secretary of Fruit-growing Union Martin Ludvík said at Fruit Days in Hradec Králové. Then total gooseberry harvest was estimated to as much as 15 000 ton yearly.

Cereals will grow on 100 000 hectares in Ústí region this year

Farmers in the region Ústí suppose that more than 100 000 hectares will be sown with cereals in the region this year, similarly as last year. Rape should be grown1 on more than 16 000 hectares. Its last year´s acreage 16 656 hectares was a record. For the present, the current winter is favourable for farmers. A chairman of the Regional Agrarian Chamber in Ústí František Loudát said it to ČTK. Farmers are afraid of big differenced in temperature in winter. However, for example permanent frosts can help to liquidate pests or improve also soil structure. A snow cover helps in hard frosts to wind over also to perennial plant-crops.

Conventional feeds in alimentation of alleged bio-turkey hens

The prosecution in Paderborn investigates, according to a reportage published in Berliner daily Tageszeitung (taz), the biggest raising of bio-poultry in Germany. According to journalists´ investigation, a bio-farm Berthold Franzsander residing in Nordrhain-Westfalen sold poultry marked with bio-labels although the animals were fattened up with conventionally produced feeds. The firm Franzsander in Delbrück belongs to the biggest, according to experts´ report. The enterprise raises thousands turkey-hens, geese, guinea-hens; yearly it slaughters 180 000 chickens and 900 000 small chickens are sold for breeding to other firms.