The article addresses the situation of traditional fishing in Madeira, denouncing what it considers to be the systematic abandonment of the sector by the authorities. The author draws a parallel between the treatment given to teachers, nurses, and fishermen, arguing that all follow the same pattern of neglect that ends up pushing these professionals towards emigration or disappearance.
While the local fleet faces problems such as lack of manpower, scarcity of structural support, and excessive bureaucracy, the official narrative denies the alleged abandonment of the sector. The author maintains that there is a deliberate agenda to push public opinion towards cage aquaculture, presented as the great solution for the future.
The article does not interpret this situation as mere neglect, but as a conscious economic model choice. By allowing traditional and artisanal fishing to wither, the author argues, space is opened for sea industrialization and the captive breeding business, replacing sustainably caught fresh fish with farm-raised product dependent on feeds and treatments.
The author concludes by warning that, when the ancestral know-how of fishermen disappears, the consumer will have no choice but to accept cage fish, paying with their wallets and their health the price of a sea that has been privatized. They defend that public policies should exist that value the profession, retain young fishermen, and guarantee Madeira's food sovereignty, rather than the easier path of intensive private investment.
