The market is located in the fishing dock and has a total area of 3200 m2. The facilities include a 1652 m2 storage area, 3600m2 of vendor’s stands, and a net drying area of 5400 m2. Next to the Muelle de Costa’s market is an ice factory produces more than 100 metric tons daily. The current market replaced the old one and on December 22, 1969 the first auction was held and sold fish caught via trawl fishing. At the end of the 1990’s and the start of the current millennium, the market underwent an important remodel and now has advanced technological means such as the telematic auction.
In the Port, the fishermen are grouped in three fishing categories: Seine, Trawl, and Trammel or Artisan. Seine fishing captures pelagic and surface species (mostly anchovies and sardines, which have a limit of 300 boxes of sardines a day and can vary with time) by artfully closing the net in a circle in order to trap the species.
The net is rectangular and wraps up the fish while it surrounds them; the lower part closes like a bag and has handles at each corner. It is used for fishing migratory species on the sea’s the surface by closing the upper and lower part of the net while a rowboat aides by shining lights that attract the species toward the surface. This type of fishing is also known as: screen fishing, light fishing, seine fishing or trawl fishing. Trawl fishing uses a fishing tug boat and a net in order to capture demersal species that live at the bottom of the sea. This type of fishing is more economically secure and stable, although there is also differs between the different ships. The most common species captured are whiting, red mullet, monkfish, scaldfish, cuttlefish, octopus, and squid.
