Sustainable Fishing Practices on the Embalse de Guatapé
Because the reservoir is an artificial ecosystem rather than a wild fishery, most of what reaches local kitchens — trout in particular — comes from managed aquaculture rather than open-water fishing, which changes the sustainability conversation considerably.
Farmed, not wild-caught
The small trout farms around the reservoir operate in controlled pens with regulated stocking density and water flow, closer in practice to responsible aquaculture than to open-lake fishing. That's generally a lower-impact model than wild capture, provided farms manage waste and density well.
What we ask our suppliers
We buy from farms that keep stocking density moderate and don't rely on antibiotics as a routine practice — questions we'd encourage any diner to ask of any kitchen, here or elsewhere.
Tilapia and the reservoir itself
Tilapia populations in the reservoir are partly self-sustaining, and local fishing of them is generally lower-impact than trout farming, though we still favour suppliers who fish within regulated limits rather than the least-regulated operators.
