fish_products

Goldfish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Gibel Carp (Carassius auratus gibelio) is the ancestor of the common goldfish we know and belongs to the large family of carp-like fishes and is widely distributed in the world. They were originally warm water fishes.

Genetic mutants formed naturally and were latter selectively bred to produce all the varieties we get today. The first breeding of goldfish occurred in China as far back as 1000A.D., at that time coloured goldfish, mainly red, were only mend for the very rich. In later years goldfish were introduced to Japan, Europe, America and other countries. The long-tailed goldfish were first bred in Germany at the end of the 18th century, but became extinct a long time ago. These days the favourite goldfish in Germany is the Oranda (a Veil tailed fish with a brain-like growth covering the entire head).

Koi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . The Koi also belongs to the Carp family (Cyprinus Carpio). It is generally agreed that the Carp originated in the area surrounding the Caspian Sea and were bred for food purposes in many countries much later. Even today Carp are farmed in many parts of the world as a source of animal protein. The common Carp or Koi was black in colour and known in Japan as 'Magoi'. As rice was the staple food in Japan and the Winter months were so cold that they could not travel to buy sea fish for protein, they started to farm Carp as a second farming product beside rice.