The wels catfish of Comabbio, on the dinner tables of Milan

From today, any wels catfish, crucian carp and common roach caught in the Ticino River, in Lake Maggiore, in Lake Varese, and in the Lakes of Como, Comabbio and Novate Mezzola, can be sold on the stalls of Milan’s Fish Market, and this is thanks to an agreement signed on Saturday morning at the Fish Market, to market and exploit the Lombard Lakes’ least noble fish. The agreement was brought about by the Lombardy Region, with the Councillor for Agriculture, Giulio De Capitani, and the Councillor for Trade, Margherita Peroni.

We have got to know them, thanks to the numerous stories told also by our readers: originally from Central Eastern Europe, over the last few years, the wels catfish have found an ideal habitat in which to proliferate, also in the lakes in Lombardy, becoming predators of the indigenous fish species and threatening the equilibrium of the ecosystem of our rivers and lakes. However, their presence in the lakes and rivers of Lombardy may also be a resource. The wels catfish, crucian carp and common roach cost little and are particularly appreciated in countries along the Danube, and today, are greatly sought-after in Milan’s Fish Market, where demand is so high that they have even had to be imported from abroad.

According to the Region, the agreement (signed in Varese by the Provincial Councillor for Agriculture and Fishing, Bruno Specchiarelli) will transform a problem into an opportunity. The agreement covers the marketing, at Milan’s Fish Market, of the catches from the waters of Lombardy. Furthermore, it lays the foundations for a subsequent distribution of the Lombard Lakes’ least noble fish, to markets in Eastern Europe, starting with Bucharest, thanks to the involvement of the Consulate in Romania.