Christmas carp cheaper this year

Photo: wikipedia

This year, the price will be about 9 zloty (2.1 euro) per kilogram for locally farmed carp, an offer that is already on promotion at a number of supermarket chains.

Zbigniew Szczepanski from the Pan Karp (Mr Carp) Society for the Promotion of Fish has noted that current prices mean that imports of carp from other countries such as the Czech Republic will not pay off.

However, this year, Polish carp farmers will be paid about 2 zloty less (0.4 euro) per kilogram than they were in 2011.

Szczepanski revealed that carp farmers cut a deal with supermarkets in October, but that now many are regretting that they agreed to the low price.

This year, Polish carp farmers have about 17,000 tonnes of carp for sale. It takes three years for carp to reach the maturity required.

Most of Poland's carp ponds are located in central and southern Poland.

Carp ponds were also a typical feature of Polish manors, but this ended with the expropriations of property introduced by the post-war communist regime.

Carp endures as the key dish for Poles on Christmas Eve (Wigilia). As many as twelve dishes are eaten (symbolising the twelve apostles), and carp is invariably regarded as the most indispensable, as a survey this week underlined. (nh)

Source: PAP