Bordeaux – natural focus for big EAS congress

Delegates were particularly drawn by the topic of ‘success, failure and bankruptcy in the aquaculture industry’

THE name Bordeaux is synonymous with excellent wine, but in fact this historic capital of Aquitaine presides over an area of south west France which could as easily be famous for its aquaculture in future. The region has a vast resource of potential sites, with brackish and freshwater marshes, lakes and ponds, rivers, no shortage of water, and even the possibility of offshore marine farms. It already produces oysters – 50,000 tons at Marennes, 15,000 tons at Arcachon – clams, trout, salmon – the farm of Mezos in Landes produces 2,000 tons a year – prawns from farms in the marshes, eels in closed-circuit systems, sturgeon and turbot, to name but a few projects.

Bordeaux, therefore, formed a natural venue for the Aquaculture Europe ’89, staged by the European Aquaculture Society (EAS) in October. The event was held in several halls of the Palais des Congres at Bordeaux-Lac, and indeed several cage manufacturers took advantage of the adjacent lake to float their exhibits.

As usual with these occasions, the congress was far too large for any