The specialized meeting on the challenges facing the development of human consumption of Kilka was held at the session hall of the Iranian Fisheries Science and Research Institute. According to the latest statistics, more than 95 % of the catch of Kilka is converted into fish meal in processing plants and less than 5 % is used for human consumption in the country.While the nutritional value of Kilka is better than other aquatics, for example, the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 (3.43 %) in this fish is a clear indication. Therefore, the need for different departments to work together to increase human consumption is one of the strategies that have been developed in the context of culturalization and promoting proper consumption, and its output will be to promote community health at the macro level.At the beginning of the meeting, Dr. Mahmoud Bahmani pointed to the importance of Kilka in terms of human nutrition, fishery, processing and fish stocks, and provided explanations for each.Mr. Parviz Mohebbi, the deputy director of capture fisheries and fishermen's affairs of the Iran Fisheries Organization, presented a
detailed report on the Kilka fishery process over the past years.Mr. Parviz Mohebbi pointed that 62 % of fishery catches in the Caspian Sea belonged to Kilka in 2018 - 2019.He said: Kilka had a significant social and economic role in the employment of fisheries industries on the southern coast of the Caspian Sea. According to him, the catch of Kilka has now increased with the reduction in the warty comb jelly volume. The deputy director of capture fisheries and fishermen's affairs of the Iran Fisheries Organization continued: Continuing and completing research activities to increase the effectiveness of tackling the invasive comb jelly, the provision of employment opportunities for the fishing fleet and the effort to increase catches at depths above 200 m are some of the ways to tackle the Kilka fisheries management problems.Mr. Mohebbi said encouraging the fisheries industries to change production direction to human consumption, expand Kilka exports to applicant countries and improve transportation as well as storage practices were among the most important ways to increase Kilka production for human consumption.Then, Dr. Golshahi, the general manager of quality improvement, processing and market development of aquatic products of the Iran Fisheries Organization, said: Human consumption was about 3170 tons in 2018 - 2019, with its per capita consumption estimated at 31 grams per person. Dr. Golshahi added: Culture of consumption, good taste, need of fish meal factories, proper income of fish
meal production, method of storage and transportation at sea and when fish landed in ports, lack of development of various processing methods, the closure of a number of processing and canning units as well as the lack of proper and comprehensive advertising are reasons for the dislike of Kilka consumption.Dr. Aminollah Taghavi, the advisor to the director of the Iranian Fisheries Science and Research Institute, presented a report on the socio - economic indicators of Kilka fishing in the Guilan province and Mazandaran province. He highlighted important points regarding the Kilka fishing and the cost of goods sold for each vessel and the socio - economic problems of Kilka fishery.Dr. Reza Safari, the academic member of the Iranian Fisheries Science and Research Institute, also presented a report on the status of handling and fish quality. This report highlighted the reasons for the lack of human consumption, the storage conditions of Kilka on vessel (launch) and the methods for optimizing transportation. Mr. Zare Gashti, the head of the National Fish Processing
Research Center - UNIDO, spoke about the products made from Kilka fish at the institute.Kilka minced meat and surimi, ready – to - eat fish paste, fish sausage, breaded kilka, dried snacks, canned products, marinade and fermented products as well as minced meat and burgers were some of the most important products Mr. Zare
Gashti mentioned about Kilka.At the end of the meeting, Dr. Bahmani pointed to the readiness of the Gilan ship after 11 years and said:One of the plans for the Gilan ship is to assess the Kilka fish stocks in deep waters.Therefore, this program can be carried out in a winter research patrol with the Gilan ship in cooperation with the Iran Fisheries Organization. The director of the Iranian Fisheries Science and Research Institute added:It is necessary to have a clear plan in cooperation with the Iran Fisheries Organization for the culturalization, market, promotion and Kilka fishing, so that the task of each organization will be clear both in terms of implementation and research. The schedule for this program is better set by the end of this year. Dr. Bahmani also found it necessary to set a base price for Kilka. In response to statements by some experts that Kilka is not important for human consumption, the director of the Iranian Fisheries Science and Research Institute mentioned: In my opinion, it is not necessary to consume all the kilka produced for the production of
fish meal. Because Kilka is a desirable fish in terms of nutritional value and due to climate change in the future, it can be used as a healthy food. Therefore, we can increase the consumption of this fish to 40 % over a three - year period. In this regard, extension and training courses for the producers and stakeholders of the Kilka industry are essential. It is also necessary to hold a specialized meeting on small fish (sardines) in the future.Dr. Golshahi also stated: The value chain mechanism must be defined in the case of Kilka. In that case, the importance of fish meal production, human consumption, etc. will be determined and the share of each sector will be determined, so this is the kind of production that will be economical. Mr. Hossein Shirazi, the representative of the private sector, outlined the problems and obstacles facing manufacturers and provided tips on the market of Kilka products. It is worth mentioning that the meeting was attended by the deputy director of fisheries and aquacultureextension and transfer of research findings and the heads of specialized departments of the Iranian Fisheries Science and Research Institute and some managers from the affiliated research centers and research institutes. They discussed different aspects of catching, processing and consuming Kilka fish.