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The only marine fish farm in Slovenia, Fonda aims to breed the best farmed sea bass in the world. Only the healthiest methods are used to produce this food, which contains some of the healthiest and most important nutrients. Its freshness is indisputable, as it is delivered direct to your plate from a small area of Slovenia’s coastal waters. This year the fish farm is expected to yield around one hundred tonnes of sea bass. Whilst in the past, most of the harvest was sold abroad, nowadays, as much as 80% of total production is destined for Slovenian customers.
The Fonda family has always retained strong ties with the Istrian soil and sea. In 1984, Ugo, the head of the family, established his own independent enterprise, engaged in a variety of underwater activities, ranging from construction, marina and port maintenance, exploration and sampling, to filming and other diving activities. At that time, he probably could never have imagined that Fonda would become the only Slovenian marine fish farm.
“Our ancestors were farmers and salt workers; fish and shellfish farming are relatively recent activities which at that time were not part of our family's expertise. My father was a biologist and a professional diver who loved the sea, fish and nature and had for years striven to build artificial underwater ridges that would have a positive impact on the sea life,” explains his daughter, Irena Fonda, giving a brief summary of the family history. “However, owing to bureaucratic restrictions, all his efforts were sadly in vain. My brother Lean joined the family enterprise after completing his studies and he and my father together decided to set up a special, eco-friendly fish and shellfish farm.”
At first this was a small off-shoot, which slowly developed into a more serious activity and, after the family was granted a concession, led to the establishment of the family business Fonda.si d.o.o. Thus, the way to a future filled with numerous new challenges was opened.
We were the first to incorporate the words “sea bass” in a registered brand name.
Downlad Family Business Slovenia 2014
Fonda Piran sea bass
The Fonda approach certainly differs from other fish farms, in terms of its farming methods, concept, policies, size and vision.
“We are guided by high-quality, ecological concerns; working hand-in-hand with nature, flexibility, innovation and sustainability. In recent years, we have also diversified our core activity into the promotion of tourism or, more precisely, promoting educational tourism and cuisine,” continues Irena.
Ten years ago Fonda sea bass was given the name Fonda Piran sea bass. Then the family began developing their brand, by setting up an online fish market, and they began organising regular deliveries of fresh fish to end customers. They continue to build on all of these strengths and activities.
“We are consolidating our brand name and the recognition of the company by expanding our sales network into Austria, Italy, and Croatia.” Establishing the brand name has been one of the most successful moves made by the Fonda family business. “We were the first to register a brand name incorporating the words “sea bass,” whilst carrying our family name and that of our town. To our customers this demonstrates our personal guarantee of the quality of our produce, whilst highlighting the locality where the fish originates. It is this territory of origin that plays a decisive role in the quality of our fish,” explains Irena. Direct sales to end customers without any intermediaries, as well as our continuous care to achieve the highest quality of fish, shellfish and services in general, places the Fonda family business at the very top of our sector. “In a way, we have developed into a fish boutique. All our sales are agreed on a delivery-by-order-only basis and we take great care to ensure optimised shipping and full order tracking. The latter is extremely important to us, although rarely provided elsewhere in the market. To ensure traceability, we were the first in Europe to implement Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and QR code technology in our business process as part of the European F2F (from farm to fork) project. We are keen to use various marketing tools, including social networks, and we cooperate under the co-branding principle with a large number of our partners,” explains Irena.
All the employees are involved in the development of new products. They are also eager to listen to feedback from customers, whose ideas, wishes and hopes are valuable, although these can at times be original in the extreme. It is this close cooperation with customers that resulted in the development of the fixed order system. “And again, it was our customers who expressed their wish to visit our fish farm. Consequently, we organised visits and tastings in addition to team building events and cuisine workshops which have proven to be especially popular. Some of the new products traded under the brand name have been developed in collaboration with our partners. Traditional baking salt, olive oil and smoked sea bass are just a few of the products resulting from this cooperation.”
From generation to generation
After the untimely death of Ugo, joint management was assumed by his daughter Irena as the company director and son Lean as the head of the fish farm and underwater activities. “Our love for the sea and fish, as well as respect for the underwater world, has been passed on to us from our father. Both Irena and Lean now own the business, which has become a part of their lives. While their father was alive, they helped him develop and bring to life his numerous ideas. “Working in the fish farm is wonderful, but it is hard work,” points out Irena. “We had always looked up to our father as an example. His presence is felt daily in the way my brother and I approach the business,” adding that she and her brother are an excellent team. It is therefore no surprise that they both carry a major responsibility on their shoulders to continue the family tradition started by their father three decades ago. This responsibility is not only to the business, but also to their employees, colleagues, partners, customers and family. “Perhaps the largest responsibility we carry is to the five generations of sea bass in our sea fish farm which depend on us completely for food, a safe habitat and continuous care. This also requires teamwork, working and creating together with people you can trust completely.” Irena, a Doctor of biological science unveils another secret: “We are a family of biologists and we have decided to use our knowledge, respect for nature and our close association with the sea to realise our aim of breeding the world's best farmed sea bass through close cooperation with nature, and replicating, as closely as possible, the life enjoyed by wild fish. To achieve this we need the best fish offspring, and to ensure that we use the highest quality fish food. Untainted sea, beneficial currents which are chemical-free, and a prolonged breeding period are conditions that are vital for the prime quality of our fish and shellfish. Our fish are fed manually as this ensures better traceability and control,” explains Irena.
One hundred tonnes of sea bass
Currently, 20 staff are employed in the business. “Since everything is done manually, we need a large number of employees and we are happy to employ young people, who work at first under the close supervision of one of our more experienced colleagues, acting as their mentor,” says Irena, who grew up from a very early age in close proximity to the sea. The fact that sea bass need four to five years to grow from a tiny offspring, weighing but a few grams, to an adult weighing on average around 400g, is a clear indication that the Fonda family's outlook is long-term. While in the past, most of the fish were sold abroad, today 80% of deliveries are made to Slovenian customers. This year’s harvest will yield around one hundred tonnes of fish, twice as much as in the previous year, when revenue reached one million euros. Irena is confident that these figures can be improved, and in the next few years the family expect further increases.” Innovation, originality, flexibility and sustainability are prerequisites for the long-term survival of the business,” says Irena, as she considers the future. The family's aim is to breed and sell sufficient quantities of high-quality fish and shellfish per year to ensure the successful performance of the business, its ongoing financial stability and the improved satisfaction of all those who are an integral part of the company.
Summary
The Fonda family business in six words: “Breeding the world's best sea bass.”