Belarus's northernmost fish farm 'Novinki' will cultivate trout

January 5, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. Open Joint Stock Company "Rybkhoz Novinki" (Postavy district) intends to implement two investment projects in 2011-2012 to expand its product range, the company's director Alexander Likhománov told a BELTA correspondent. The first project involves the construction of a fish processing workshop, which will require about Br3.5 billion. The same amount is needed for the second project - the construction of a trout farming complex to replace carp, which is currently the main fish species for the enterprise, with a more valuable breed. As Alexander Likhománov noted, the fish farm has experience working with trout: they breed fry of this fish and sell planting material to other farms. In 2010, the enterprise raised 1305 tons of fish (1148 tons in 2009), including 1015 tons of marketable fish. 923.5 tons of fish were sold, including over 100 tons of silver carp and grass carp, as well as catfish and pike. The profit from sales amounted to Br140 million, with a profitability of 3.4%. Rybkhoz Novinki is the northernmost fish farm in Belarus, with a total area of 967 hectares, including 775 hectares of fattening ponds. In terms of total pond area, it is among the top ten fish farms in the republic. The fish farm has a modern incubation workshop built under the program for the development of the fish farming industry for 2006-2010. It is designed to produce and grow 15 million larvae. Planting material is purchased by many fish farming organizations in the country. In terms of economic performance, over the past five years, the joint-stock company has been among the top three best fish farming enterprises in Belarus. -0-