Silver pomfret (aavoli) is among popular fish varieties that have virtually disappeared from dining tables in Kerala and the price of its substitute, the black pomfret, has gone up to about Rs. 600 a kg in the retail market.
Market sources said on Tuesday that silver pomfret landings appeared to be rare in Kerala of late. The ones available are from Andhra Pradesh, which are smaller in size and cost about Rs. 400 a kg.
In a recent study, fisheries scientists have put Pampus argenteus in a list of ‘depleted stocks’ off the coasts of Kerala and Karnataka.
It said that the recent average landings of the variety were between six and 10 per cent of the historical maximum.
The average catch during 2003-05 for silver pomfret in Kerala was put at 122 tonnes against the historical maximum of 2,305 tonnes.
The annual report of the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute for 2012-13 said that pomfrets were among the varieties, for which the fishermen received a substantial share of the consumer price.
The report cited Bombay duck and pomfrets as being at the two ends of the fishermen’s share in the consumer rupee at 45.59 and 84.12 per cent respectively.
Pomfrets constituted four per cent of the demersal finfish (fish that live and feed near the bottom of the sea or lake) landings in the country during 2012.
