370
P. Meiot
INTRODUCTION
Goldfish farming in Italy dates back to the end of the 1800's when two
firms, prompted by the great demand for this fish, started producing and mar—
keting goldfish ”made in Italv”. It was not by chance that they were situated
in the Bologna district of Emilia Region (North Italy), the key area in the
hemp industry, in other words an area with thousands of small ponds called"ma
ceri” used for the bio—enzymatic hemp retting. It was here. in these warm wa—
ters
rich in pabulum
that thousands
of goldfish
were
bred.
The
production
could compete
with that of
other
countries
because
of
the
low cost and
the
nwrphological features of the product.
Following the
nmst
elementary
rules,
these
two
factors
meant
that,
in a
short
time,
the
Emilian pro—
duct
outclassed
the
European
sources
,
to
the
point
of
outcompeting
them.
From the beginning of the 1900's, the breeding and marketing of goldfish
continued to develop with fluctuations Which largely depended upon the well—
known historical events of the period. Around the fifties and sixties, precisely when the marketvæs atmaximum expansion, the hemp industry declined and
production was consequently stopped. This meant that the condition of thehemp
retting ponds deteriorated and, with certain exceptions, were no longer fit
for goldfish production.
After the decline of the hemp industry, other systems of goldfish production were introduced, such as breeding in abandoned rice fields and the con—
struction of raised ponds, near water courses in order to make filling, draining and exchanges of water easier without pumps.
BREEDING IN HEMP RETTING FONDS
It would be of interest to turn our attention to the classical breeding
cycle in hemp ponds of former times.At the end of the winter the cyprinid farmers
ensured that the hemp ponds were available and came to an agreement with
the owners.
In March the p0nds were filled, thus providing ideal ecological
conditions from mid April to mid May, for the release of some ZOO—250 breeders
for every 3,000 m2. From the second half of July onwards, 952 of the finger“
lings were caught with nets. The remaining fish were taken out during the reE
ting phase, when they would come to the surface for air, thus forcing the fa£
mers
to
do heavy physical work, fighting against time to minimize losses from
anoxia or poisoning. Fish caught before retting were ”restricted” (a term
which indicates the large numbers of individuals per unit surface areal in
floating nets, in ponds which were not being used for retting.Some of these fish
were
sold, obviously at low price, in order to avoid probable mortality from
overpopulation. The fish removed at this stage were about 502 red and 502
brown in colour. The unsold, together with the brown coloured fish were rein—
troduced in the ponds towards the end of September, when retting had finished
and the water in the ponds was again suitable for use, and remained there until the following spring. The fish caught during retting were put in nets in
clean ponds for recovery (detoxification) and the surviving fish were put
back into the hemp ponds in the autumn with the others. The following Spring
all the fish were caught and the hemp ponds were drained using naturaJ.or mecha*
nical means.
Production in these hemp ponds ranged from a few thousand to m9
P. Meiot
INTRODUCTION
Goldfish farming in Italy dates back to the end of the 1800's when two
firms, prompted by the great demand for this fish, started producing and mar—
keting goldfish ”made in Italv”. It was not by chance that they were situated
in the Bologna district of Emilia Region (North Italy), the key area in the
hemp industry, in other words an area with thousands of small ponds called"ma
ceri” used for the bio—enzymatic hemp retting. It was here. in these warm wa—
ters
rich in pabulum
that thousands
of goldfish
were
bred.
The
production
could compete
with that of
other
countries
because
of
the
low cost and
the
nwrphological features of the product.
Following the
nmst
elementary
rules,
these
two
factors
meant
that,
in a
short
time,
the
Emilian pro—
duct
outclassed
the
European
sources
,
to
the
point
of
outcompeting
them.
From the beginning of the 1900's, the breeding and marketing of goldfish
continued to develop with fluctuations Which largely depended upon the well—
known historical events of the period. Around the fifties and sixties, precisely when the marketvæs atmaximum expansion, the hemp industry declined and
production was consequently stopped. This meant that the condition of thehemp
retting ponds deteriorated and, with certain exceptions, were no longer fit
for goldfish production.
After the decline of the hemp industry, other systems of goldfish production were introduced, such as breeding in abandoned rice fields and the con—
struction of raised ponds, near water courses in order to make filling, draining and exchanges of water easier without pumps.
BREEDING IN HEMP RETTING FONDS
It would be of interest to turn our attention to the classical breeding
cycle in hemp ponds of former times.At the end of the winter the cyprinid farmers
ensured that the hemp ponds were available and came to an agreement with
the owners.
In March the p0nds were filled, thus providing ideal ecological
conditions from mid April to mid May, for the release of some ZOO—250 breeders
for every 3,000 m2. From the second half of July onwards, 952 of the finger“
lings were caught with nets. The remaining fish were taken out during the reE
ting phase, when they would come to the surface for air, thus forcing the fa£
mers
to
do heavy physical work, fighting against time to minimize losses from
anoxia or poisoning. Fish caught before retting were ”restricted” (a term
which indicates the large numbers of individuals per unit surface areal in
floating nets, in ponds which were not being used for retting.Some of these fish
were
sold, obviously at low price, in order to avoid probable mortality from
overpopulation. The fish removed at this stage were about 502 red and 502
brown in colour. The unsold, together with the brown coloured fish were rein—
troduced in the ponds towards the end of September, when retting had finished
and the water in the ponds was again suitable for use, and remained there until the following spring. The fish caught during retting were put in nets in
clean ponds for recovery (detoxification) and the surviving fish were put
back into the hemp ponds in the autumn with the others. The following Spring
all the fish were caught and the hemp ponds were drained using naturaJ.or mecha*
nical means.
Production in these hemp ponds ranged from a few thousand to m9