Fishermen south of Burgas have caught a lot of bonito this week, Yordan Karakashev of the fishing cooperative in Ahtopol told Bulgarian National Radio. "It's a bonito year," he said.

A kilogram costs about €6, within a range of €4 to €6, and the price can fall to €4-5 when catches are bigger. That makes fresh bonito cheaper than mackerel, which now sells for about €8.50 a kilogram at fish markets. Last year mackerel cost between €7 and €6.14 (12 leva). Karakashev says bonito is a better choice than mackerel.

The fish is sold in three sizes. Large bonito weighs 800 grams and up, medium fish 500-600 grams, and small ones about 200-250 grams.

Before this catch, the fishermen had gone 10 days without fish. Now the fresh bonito season is on, and freezers are filling up.

Fishermen still hope to catch red mullet and black sea bream (chernokop), which have been almost absent this year. "Bluefish and black sea bream are rarely caught in the south now," Karakashev said.