How much does fish and seafood go up in price from the fishing boat to the restaurant table? At one of the largest fish markets in Burgas, prices vary from BGN 4 per kilogram of sprat to BGN 40 per kilogram of turbot. And from the market to the plate in the restaurant, the price of seafood jumps double. However, a holiday on the Bulgarian Black Sea coast cannot be complete without delicious sprats on the beach, most often in combination with potatoes or a cold beer.
Georgi Dimov-Chicagoto is a long-time fisherman. The bTV team went deep into the sea to see if there would be any luck with the catch.
„Unfortunately, there are very few fish at the moment. The seasons changed, the water warmed up very early and the saffron we catch went deep into cooler waters,” explains fisherman Georgi Dimov.
Luck smiles and the bTV team catches a safrid. But warm water and overfishing are some of the main reasons there are fewer and more expensive fish on the market.
„All over the world, fish is an expensive pleasure. It wasn't like that here years ago, the fish was much cheaper, but now the market is being regulated and this thing – it happens according to the quantities and according to the demand. The saffron is cheap, they buy it here for 5-7 BGN, but on the market it is 10-12 BGN. They buy the pop for 12 BGN, and sell it for 14 BGN. And it's not enough because there are a lot of fish restaurants," Georgi Dimov is emphatic.
„Customers currently prefer safrid. We have fresh Black Sea saffron at the moment, it's very nice. A large catch comes out less often, most of it is graza. Right now is the clam season, July-August the shell is at its fullest and best. We get fresh clams every day. Mussels and crabs are the most popular at the moment. We make sure that we have fish for each customer, as we have fish for 4-5 BGN, so we also have 15-20 BGN“, explains Zekie Mehmedova.
„It is too warm for sprats, we only have frozen ones. Not in every store. Mussels are 4 BGN for many years, saffron is 10 BGN if it is fresh. Fresh popce is sold for 15 BGN. There is also imported fish – such as sea bass and sea bream. Fresh fish is less and less available, and maybe that's why it's more expensive,”, merchant Nadia Keller is categorical.