On 11 December 2024, at the headquarters of the Polish Press Agency in Warsaw, a debate took place. It was organised by the FAPA Foundation of the Polish Chamber of Cooperative Banking entitled: “Poland’s food security in the aspect of maritime economy”.
During the discussion, attention was drawn, among other things, to the need to develop Polish deep-sea fisheries. In addition, the role of fisheries in the context of global food security was highlighted.
Poland has a rich tradition of deep-sea fishing, dating back to the inter-war period. Even after World War II, the sector flourished, with 600 000 tonnes of fish caught in 1975. Today, between 50 000 and 60 000 tonnes are caught annually, by private companies, two of which are leading members of the Deep-Sea Fish Producers’ Organisation. They perform catches in the North Atlantic, South Pacific and West African waters. The NMFRI’s seamless cooperation with deep-sea vessel owners is worth highlighting. Between 2004 and 2022, more than 300,000 fish samples were collected on deep-sea vessels for analysis in the three areas. Most of the samples – about 100,000 – were collected in the North Atlantic area during about 30 voyages lasting a total of 1,700 days.
Fish is a food rich in essential protein and the fatty acids EPA and DHA, which are only produced by marine organisms and no other food contains them. “For this reason, marine products are absolutely essential and, moreover, irreplaceable in our diet,” said Joanna Szlinder-Richert, deputy scientific director of the National Marine Fisheries Research Institute. She added that the World Health Organisation recommends that we consume 250 mg of EPA and DHA acids per day to prevent cardiovascular disease or reduce insulin resistance. “Marine fish are therefore key to ensuring quality food security,” the expert pointed out.
Participants during the debate (photo: Piotr Kucza)
Member of parliament Marek Gróbarczyk and the NMFRI representatives – Dr.Eng. Joanna Szlinder-Richert, Prof. NMFRI (right) and Dr. Emil Kuzebski (centre) (photo: Piotr Kucza)
