Present status of eel farming in recirculation systems

Eels are considered a delicacy in some countries in Western Europe and have traditionally fetched high prices, in the near past in the order of 8-10 US$/kg. The high value and decreasing landings from fisheries have been a strong impetus for developing eel culture over the last 30 years. Eels need a water temperature of 23 to 25 °C for optimal growth. Given the climate in Western Europe, farming of eel is only an option using warm effluent from power stations or recirculation technology. Although some of the early initiatives were utilizing warm effluent in a flow-through mode, this approach has been virtually abandoned because it proved not to be reliable. The first recirculation systems for eel were built at the end of the seventies. Slowly and with much difficulty eel farming has expanded, mainly in Denmark and The Netherlands, to a business comprising approximately 100 farms with a production of 6700 MT in 1999.

Reproduction of Eel

The biology of eel is different from other farmed fish species. This is caused by the biology of eel and its life cycle. Eel is belongs to the fishes which are migrating from fresh water into the ocean to reproduce. The young fish returns from the long journey from the Sargasso Sea back to Europe as so called glaas eel. After six to nine years the males and after eight to twelve years the females are going back to the ocean to reproduce. Therefore the new fish for stocking in the farms has to be caught from the wild and to be brought to the fish farms. Because this natural resource is limited the prices for glaas eel are varying over the years.

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