Secche di Ugento Traditional Fishery

Slow Food Presidium

Italy

Puglia

Fish, sea food and fish products

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The Torre San Giovanni–Ugento fishing area is located in a stretch of sea off the coast between Torre Pali and Torre Mozza, extending to around 3 miles offshore. The sea is very shallow here and the bed is characterized by scattered banks where the depth can quickly change from 5 meters to just 70 centimeters. Known as the Secche di Ugento (the “Ugento shallows”), they lie in front of the port of the same name. Plutarch mentioned the area in his biography of Pyrrhus, describing how, after a storm, the Epirote king’s boat ran aground in the shallow waters.
Fishing in this part of the Ionian Sea is practiced by artisanal fishers who are very familiar with the treacherous Ugento seabed. They have inherited a centuries-long tradition of fishing, historically based on techniques that respect the sea and the life cycles of its inhabitants. A particular type of net is used for every species, with different-sized meshes that ensure high selectivity and therefore greater sustainability. Traps and lines are also used. The catch varies depending on the season, and can include mackerel, bluefish, greater amberjack, Atlantic bonito, barracuda, gray mullet, frigate tuna and cuttlefish in the fall and winter; dentex, white bream, sea bream and sea bass in the summer and fall; and octopus and mullet in the spring.

Season

Fish are caught all year round

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The Presidium’s fishermen belong to the Società Cooperativa Pescatori Padre Pio. They operate six boats of around 12 meters long and are inspired by principles of sustainability, using traditional fixed nets like trammel nets and gill nets, longlines and traps. The Presidium wants to raise their profile to help preserve the fishing techniques that have been passed down over the centuries and the knowledge traditionally held by the fishers about the characteristics of the seabed, the behavior and habits of the marine species and the environment in general. The Presidium also intends to promote an awareness-raising campaign about the importance of protecting all of the Mediterranean’s small-sale fishing, encouraging the expansion of marine protected areas and the use of nets with wider meshes than the legal limits.

Fishing area
Ugento coast, Lecce province
Producers

Società Cooperativa Pescatori
La Bussola del Salento
Via Ugo Foscolo, 30
Lecce
Tel. +39 333 4604472
bussolasalentocoop@gmail.com
(riferimento Claudio Longo)

The cooperative brings together five fishermen: Leonardo Bagnato, Vincenzo Bruno, Marcello Colaianni, Salvatore Maggio, Cristian Rizzato.
The fish caught by the Presidium can be bought every day by the fishermen when they return to port at the Torre San Giovanni di Ugento fishing pier.
Presidium Producers’ Coordinator
Claudio Longo
Tel. 333 4604472
claudiolongo@virgilio.it

Slow Food Presidium Coordinator
Marco D’Adamo
Tel. 328 1808089
marcodadamo77@gmail.com
The Presidium’s fishermen belong to the Società Cooperativa Pescatori Padre Pio. They operate six boats of around 12 meters long and are inspired by principles of sustainability, using traditional fixed nets like trammel nets and gill nets, longlines and traps. The Presidium wants to raise their profile to help preserve the fishing techniques that have been passed down over the centuries and the knowledge traditionally held by the fishers about the characteristics of the seabed, the behavior and habits of the marine species and the environment in general. The Presidium also intends to promote an awareness-raising campaign about the importance of protecting all of the Mediterranean’s small-sale fishing, encouraging the expansion of marine protected areas and the use of nets with wider meshes than the legal limits.

Fishing area
Ugento coast, Lecce province
Producers

Società Cooperativa Pescatori
La Bussola del Salento
Via Ugo Foscolo, 30
Lecce
Tel. +39 333 4604472
bussolasalentocoop@gmail.com
(riferimento Claudio Longo)

The cooperative brings together five fishermen: Leonardo Bagnato, Vincenzo Bruno, Marcello Colaianni, Salvatore Maggio, Cristian Rizzato.
The fish caught by the Presidium can be bought every day by the fishermen when they return to port at the Torre San Giovanni di Ugento fishing pier.
Presidium Producers’ Coordinator
Claudio Longo
Tel. 333 4604472
claudiolongo@virgilio.it

Slow Food Presidium Coordinator
Marco D’Adamo
Tel. 328 1808089
marcodadamo77@gmail.com

Territory

StateItaly
RegionPuglia