Deliveries from abroad fell to a record low
Photo: Vladimir VELENGURIN
“Pollock spends most of his life in a freshly frozen form,” they joked in Soviet times. But now the path from the sea to the counter has been shortened thanks to our brave fishermen. According to the Pollock Producers Association (ADM), domestic pollock products have completely replaced imported products in the domestic market, leaving them at a paltry 1%.
– Imports amounted to 158 tons, including 134 tons of pollock fillets and 24 tons of pollock surimi (in Russian common people – crab sticks, – Ed.), – said ADM President Alexei Buglak. – This is almost 11 times less than in 2021, and 130 times less than in 2014, when the share of imported products in the domestic market exceeded 13%.
And if earlier most of the pollock products were brought to us frozen from abroad, now, thanks to the growth of domestic production, it is possible to sell fresher fish.
According to ADM, in 2022, our fishermen produced 987,000 tonnes of pollock, fillet, minced meat and surimi, 8% more than in 2021.
– Taking into account the capacity of the domestic market, 183,000 tons of products were supplied to it, – says Aleksey Buglak. – This is about 2.6 kg per person, or about 12% of the total consumption of fish products in Russia. Pollock has been and remains Russia’s main trade object: its share in the national catch is about 35%.
By the way, the pollock on the counter has long changed its appearance to the consumer. It was in the USSR that only frozen fish tails were sold. Now in vogue – deep processing. And its volume is also growing. For example, the production of pollock fillets amounted to 126 thousand tons, 22% more than in 2021. The production of minced meat and crab sticks has also increased.
So cooking and eating haddock is now much more enjoyable than before.
Since the beginning of 2023, the largest fishing season in Russia has begun – the Sea of Okhotsk fishing season for pollock. According to ADM forecasts, the catch for the season can reach 750-800 thousand tons of pollock. And in total, the annual catch is planned: 2.06 million tons. Last year it was 1.9 million tons. And this means that our Russian pollock will be enough for everyone.
EXPERT OPINION
Haddock is the perfect fish to lose weight
“The most important thing in pollock, in addition to useful trace elements from calcium to phosphorus, is an easily digestible protein,” Zukhra Pavlova, an endocrinologist and nutritionist, told kp.ru. – Also, pollock is not a fatty fish, like herring or mackerel. And since there are a lot of overweight people in Russia, it would be nice to reduce the number of calories consumed. Pollock is a suitable product for these purposes (its calorie content is 72 kcal per 100 g of product, about the same as in peas, – Ed.). But in order not to spoil the pollock and not detract from its benefits, it should not be fried. Baking, cooking – please. But don’t fry. In the kitchen, in order to avoid an annoying smell, it is advisable to use additives: lemon, rosemary, tarragon. Fatty fish should also be in the diet, but when we want to lose weight, pollock is a very good option.
