17th August, 2010
The Fisheries Society of Nigeria (FISON) on Monday in Lagos stressed the need for the country to hold a fish fair.
The National President of FISON, Mrs. Foluke Areola, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that there was the need to expose the wealth of the industry to the international market.
Areola said that hosting an international fish fair would be of immense benefit and would create a lot of opportunities for collaboration.
“The fair will open doors for trade between exhibitors and local stakeholders.
“Fish fair brings money to the host country because it also serves as a form of tourism fair.
“At the last international fish fair held in Germany, professionals from fish wholesale and retail sectors were there.
“There were professionals from the catering, hotels, importers, exporters, brokers and fish processors gave useful information on new products and trends. “Exhibitors came from 40 different countries while over 11,400 visitors, including professionals, came from 58 countries for the fair,†Areola said.
She noted that it would be an opportunity to showcase the wealth of fisheries and product technologies that had been developed indigenously for smoking and sun drying.
“Currently, we have very good smoking kilns produced in the country used by most fish farmers.
“It has also made our smoked fish to be in high demand and acceptable at the international market,†Areola said.
She said that the fair would also be an opportunity for Nigeria to showcase the different species of edible and ornamental fish of commercial value.