"It was a day that went well for us. We hope it is an omen for the rest of the campaign. We caught 100 tuna, most of them always weighing more than 200 kilos. One stood out in particular, because it weighed 330 kilos", said Miguel Socorro, general director of Real Atunara, to the Lusa agency.

Real Atunara and Tunipex are the two companies in Olhão that are dedicated to fishing bluefin tuna using the centuries-old method of the almadraba, a fishing gear, or sustainable fishing art, which, as opposed to trawling, avoids the destruction of the seabed and respects the preservation of the species.

The Lusa agency accompanied the first capture operation in 2024 of the well-known bluefin tuna, in the Barril trap, about four kilometres south of the Ilha de Tavira, in the district of Faro.

The day began at 6:30 am at the Olhão Fishing Port with the arrival and preparation of a team of about 30 people on two boats, which shortly after began the journey of about 15 kilometres to the fishing gear.

The almadraba - from the Arabic almadraba - which joins "alma", which means place and "darab", which means fight - is, in this case, a structure supported by anchors and cables, composed of vertical nets that create a sophisticated labyrinth, a trap that catches the bluefin tuna that travels towards the Mediterranean.

This fishing art has existed for more than 3,000 years and in 1898, according to historians, there were 18 traps on the Algarve coast. But in the 1950s, the tuna fishing crisis in the Algarve led to the almost disappearance of this technique.

The almadraba season normally runs from May to September. In May, bluefin tuna migrate from the cold waters of the Atlantic to the warmer waters of the Mediterranean to spawn, passing through the Strait of Gibraltar. From July, the species makes its return journey to the Atlantic.

Questioned by Lusa about the difficulties associated with this type of operation, the captain of the trap and master of the main boat, Rui Ornelas, said that it depends on the sea conditions, admitting that sometimes it can be complicated.

"[...] Because this is not a job on land with stable ground, but it has movement. But as long as everything is structured and organised, things are always the same, they are always repetitive. Therefore, there is not much difficulty", said Rui Ornelas, anticipating that he expects a good season and that the quota set for catching tuna will be reached.

According to Miguel Socorro, this year, Real Atunara will be able to catch 220 tons of tuna, an operation that involves a team of 35 people, mainly composed of sailors, masters and engineers from its fleet of vessels and a team of divers.

After years of overfishing that led to a significant reduction in the species' stocks in the sea, tuna fishing was regulated, to rebuild the stock, and bluefin tuna fishing became a sustainable operation, respecting the natural cycle of the animals and complying with the recommendations of ICCAT (International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas) and the directives of the European Union.

"It is a commodity that will be 100% exported and will surely delight the most demanding chefs, who only work with top quality products", also said the general director of Real Atunara.

At lunchtime, the two vessels returned to the port of Olhão, where two TIR trucks were waiting for them, which transported the 100 tuna to customers in Spain.

Bluefin tuna is part of the traditional gastronomy of several countries, and particularly in Japan, with its popularity and price constantly growing, being considered a culinary jewel, coveted by chefs of great restaurants and appreciated by consumers all over the world.

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