2023-10-21 03:00:00
A family business founded in 1935, the Mathonet fish farm in Malmedy is a key player in the region. Specializing in the breeding of freshwater trout, the company today faces major challenges, which endanger the entire sector. To face this threat, the Mathonet family received a visit from a delegation of European experts.
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Made up of 49 officials from the European Commission and aquaculture experts from member states, the delegation is responsible for working on “more sustainable and competitive aquaculture”, strategic orientation of the European Union for the period 2021-2030. The group visited the ponds and the processing workshop of the Mathonet site, before taking part in a tasting, followed by a debate.
La Reine de l’Amblève goes well with a local beer. – YGy The European delegation visited the farm’s basins. -YGy
A quality but demanding product
The Mathonet fish farm has a processing workshop. – YGy Trout reach their adult size after 2 years. -YGy
Located at the confluence of the Amblève and the Ru de Recht, the Mathonet company raises trout from egg to plate. Sold ready to cook or eat, smoking or mousse, the Reine de l’Amblève requires special care.
Olivier Mathonet. – YGy
“We raise the first 100% Belgian organic trout. We also have quality conventional trout of controlled origin. As a result, our fish do not receive any antibiotics and are fed with healthy fish meal,” explains Olivier Mathonet.
The trout are fed with fish meal. -YGy
“Our breeding takes between 1.5 and 2 years before reaching maturity, which requires a significant investment and constant attention. But we obtain a quality artisanal product, which has nothing to do with industrial trout.”
If the trend continues, only a handful of breeders will survive in the next 5 years
Mathonet
6 challenges for a sector in crisis
With a turnover of around €1,000,000 for a production of 100 tonnes per year, Mathonet is doing relatively well. But this is not the case for other artisans, so the number would have decreased by a third since the year 2000. Mathonet estimates that the sector risks collapsing in the next 5 years if the trend continues.
Global warming has disrupted river water. When it is too hot, or too poorly oxygenated, it does not constitute a viable habitat for fish. Breeders therefore wish to modernize their equipment in order to adapt the aquatic environment according to hazards.
Nets protect fish from predators. -YGy
Every year, piscivorous birds such as the gray heron, the osprey or the great cormorant “take” kilos of trout from the ponds. Unfortunately, to protect themselves from these deadweight losses, fish farmers can only try to scare away these predators because they belong to protected species, and are asking for more indulgence from Europe.
Despite protections, piscivorous birds devour kilos of trout each year. -YGy
Breeders also want to benefit from help from Europe to find new outlets for offal, fight against infectious diseases, and create a hatchery of quality Belgian fry (young trout) in order to reduce exports.
Furthermore, they absolutely want consumers to be better informed about the quality of artisanal trout, which has become commonplace in the eyes of certain consumers. To achieve this objective, Mathonet already regularly offers attractive recipes on its Facebook site.
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