Bluefin tuna almost doubles its amount of heart-healthy fatty acids after five months in the nursery

Editor/Mohamed Shihab

The research, promoted by Anatún and Galpemur, has been carried out by Taxon Environmental Studies in the facilities that Grupo Ricardo Fuentes owns in San Pedro del Pinatar and El Gorguel

The percentage of heart-healthy fatty acids in farmed bluefin tuna increases considerably as the tunas spend more time in nurseries (fattening ranches). This is one of the main conclusions of the study promoted by the National Bluefin Tuna Aquaculture Association (Anatún) and the Local Fisheries and Aquaculture Action Group of the Region of Murcia, (Galpemur), and which has been carried out by Taxon Environmental Studies in the facilities that Grupo Ricardo Fuentes has in the waters of the Region of Murcia. Researchers from the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of the University of Murcia have participated in the project.

The main objective of the study was to know to what extent the location of aquaculture production influences the nutritional composition of tunas, specifically in relation to fatty acids. To this end, this composition was studied in specimens captured in the 2022 fishing campaign in the Balearic Sea, as well as in tunas fed for several months in the nurseries that the Ricardo Fuentes Group owns in San Pedro del Pinatar and El Gorguel (Cartagena).

The results show that the percentage and concentration of heart-healthy fatty acids in muscle increases over time, at least until 5 months of stay in the nurseries, regardless of their location. In this sense, Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids were the ones that registered the greatest increase over time.

On the other hand, the study reveals the possibility of associating the origin of the bluefin tuna with one or another nursery depending on the concentration of said fatty acids and the chemical composition of the muscle (trace elements).

Diego Romero, professor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and participant in the study, points out that the results obtained "clearly show the improvement that occurs in the nutritional quality of this species after its stay in the nurseries. Therefore, we recommend maintaining research projects about the species to improve knowledge about its physiology, well-being and traceability".

This study has the support of the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) and the Autonomous Community of the Region of Murcia, as well as the collaboration of the University of Murcia, ANATUN, Taxon Estudios Ambientales, GALPEMUR and Grupo Ricardo Fuentes.

Source: La Verdad