Bacalhau, made in Angola, wants to stimulate consumption and save Angolans’ wallets.

The Portuguese-origin company has created Made in Angola cod, using dried salted fish from the same family as the legal one, to help Angolans overcome the crisis and enjoy a traditional Consoada dinner while spending a little less.

Although it is not the species “Gadus Morhua”, known by the commercial name of cod, but rather hake (“Phycis Phycis”), the project’s promoter, Portuguese Antonio Cartacho, has named the product Angolan cod and intends to keep it that way.

António Cartaxo, administrator and owner of the company Atlântico Foods, based in Viana (Luanda), which he created in 2016, ensures that nothing is hidden from consumers, since the scientific name is indicated in the technical data sheet of the product.

“Since in Portugal they mistook it for cod and didn’t add Portuguese, we are very patriotic here and that’s why we put in Angolan cod,” the businessman joked.

A mentor for the project, which started this year, said the idea arose from a challenge to create a “great quality product” in the country that responded to the country’s already established cod culture, which originated in Portugal.

According to António Cartacho, a Portuguese citizen who has lived in Angola for several decades, Angolans are not yet big consumers of cod, “but a habit is starting to form, especially during the festive season.”

In addition, “there are many events throughout the year where cod is prepared. As the Portuguese say, cod has 1,001 cooking methods and is already beginning to fit into the national culture,” he said.

The company, which employs 70 Angolan employees, has already produced 23 tons, which equates to about a month and a half of production.

The natural drying process still limits production, but Antonio Cartascio is confident about the future.

With an initial investment of approximately 50 million kwanzas (56 thousand euros), the company is preparing to invest in the first quarter of 2024 an amount of 250 million kwanzas (279,000 euros) to 300 million kwanzas (335,000 euros) for production on a national scale with the prospect of covering 100 workers.

The 100% national origin fish is caught on the Angolan coast, in the areas of Soyo (Zaire Province) or Tombua (Namibe Province), and is purchased from artisanal fishermen or in partnership with industrial vessels.

The process begins with the acquisition of a certain amount of fresh and mostly frozen fish from ships on the high seas, immediately upon arrival at the facilities located in the Viana industrial complex, through the selection of fish by size, the businessman explained.

“We have current and grown fish, then we do the scales (…), then salting and drying. At the end of the drying process we determine the size of the product, but the process is identical, even the same as that made from imported cod,” he added.

“What distinguishes ‘Made in Angola’ cod from real cod is its appearance,” explained Antonio Cartascio, pointing out the differences in the tail of the national fish, the hake, as well as its slightly more prominent spine.

“The family of fish is the same, these are godiformes, then we have several species, ours is similar to the real cod. There are small differences, the only thing that is most noticeable is the size, this one is much smaller, we cannot Cod is very large, large and additionally, we managed to make adult and real cod,” he said.

The manager and owner of Atlântico Foods told Lusa that the Portuguese who consumed the Angolan bacalhau were “satisfied” and “surprised by the quality of the product.” Some asked to bring the product to Portugal for Christmas, and he was “flattered” by this attitude.

“We think that in the near future we will be able to open our horizons to other countries, think about exporting and take the name of Angola abroad,” he said, adding that all products have already been sold.

António Cartacho assured that the taste and texture of Angolan cod is “in every respect similar to imported”, emphasizing the economic aspect as an advantage, since in the end the product is more economical.

“Cod at the moment in large supermarkets costs between 9,000 kwanzas (ten euros) and 10,000 kwanzas (11 euros) per kilogram, between farmed and current,” he said, given that Angolans have the opportunity to have a second choice. , “a national product made in Angola.”

For imported cod, prices range from 11,000 kwanza (12 euros) per kilogram of small cod to 18,000 kwanza (20 euros) per kilogram of specialty cod, the most expensive.

At this initial stage, the head of Atlântico Foods said, a partnership has been created with a large supermarket to sell the product, but it opens the door to other partners, namely restaurants and hotels.