MOSCOW, March 13. /TASS/. The share of salmon species within the total volume of fish farmed in Russia, Deputy Head of the Federal Agency for Fishery Vasily Sokolov said on Wednesday.

"We want to change the species structure of aquaculture. As you see, we [now] have 65% of carp breeding. A different goal is set in our strategy by 2030, that is, salmons should account for at least 37% [in fish farming], because these are the most valuable and promising targets, from our point of view," Sokolov noted. Other kinds of species should also appear in the domestic aquaculture, particularly whitefish.

Domestic aquaculture demonstrates significant growth, Sokolov noted. Fish farmers bred 239,000 tonnes of fish in 2018. The Southern Federal District takes the lead. The second is the Northwestern Federal District comprising Karelia, which accounts for 88% of trout grown in the country. Salmon breeding reached 28% but carp farming in Southern Russia is still at the leading position, the official said.

Huge water fund that can be provided to the business is the key factor in aquaculture development, Sokolov noted. The Agency plans to convert all auctions on water areas to be allocated into the electronic format, similarly to sea areas, he said.

"The algorithm of such auctions has already been worked out with the RTS [Russian electronic trading platform - TASS] platform. It is absolutely corruption-free, transparent, and enables the user to independently participate in these auctions. It is only needed to undergo the accreditation procedure," the official noted.

Establishment of breeding and competence centers can be another growth point for aquaculture, Sokolov said. Updating veterinary rules for the industry is also required, he added.