A few weeks ago, deputies Marcia Raphael and Mauro González, the executive director of the Salmon Council, Loreto Seguel, and the president of SalmonChile, Arturo Clément, appealed to the Comptroller General of the Republic (CGR).

This questioned the powers of the Undersecretariat of the Environment in matters such as approving management plans and issuing favorable prior reports in the aforementioned key procedures for aquaculture concessions that it operates in protected areas.

Author: Jonathan Garcés / SalmonExpert | Read the full article here

The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) launched the Protecting Seafood Trade Report 2023, today, Thursday 12 September 2024.

The report highlights the important work the SFPA carries out to protect and enable the import and export of seafood. Irish seafood exports in 2023 were valued at €550 million. As Ireland’s competent authority for seafood trade compliance, the SFPA undertakes a range of activities critical to enabling Ireland’s seafood economy.

Author: Oliver McBride / TheFishingDaily | Read the full article here

Loch Duart prides itself on being one of the last remaining independent, non-multinational Scottish fish-farming companies.

That independence gives the company a freedom that its larger, often publicly traded competitors don’t have, such as the ability to specialize on operating small-scale, low-impact farms and focus on certain products and markets, according to Loch Duart Managing Director Mark Warrington. The company’s salmon are raised in low-density, low-energy, sheltered sites that use a bespoke fish feed and feature minimal fish handling. 

Author: Cliff White / SeafoodSource | Read the full article here

MPs have attended an event in Westminster to learn more about the economic and environmental benefits of Scottish salmon.

The breakfast briefing, hosted by Western Isles MP Torcuil Crichton, brought together several new politicians as well as long-serving MPs.

Scottish salmon is the UK’s largest food export, with international sales increasing by 41 per cent in the first half of 2024

Source: FishFocus | Read the full article here

The Nueva Pescanova Group has presented its results for the first five accounting months of 2024, from April to August, in which there has been a 2% increase in turnover compared to the same period of the previous year. The operational efficiencies implemented have led to an increase in margins, which has generated an EBITDA of 18.1 million, which is almost double (185%) the EBITDA of the entire previous year (9.8 million), explains the multinational, adding that these results reverse the negative trend of the company in recent years.

Source: IndustriasPesqueras | Read the full article here

The energy transition in the fisheries sector is not just about reducing emissions and fighting climate change—it's about ensuring the sector remains competitive on the global stage and stays resilient in the long-term.

The sector’s reliance on fossil fuels threatens the viability of the industry, making the shift to low-impact, low-carbon practices essential for both economic and environmental sustainability. By accelerating this transition, the EU can enhance the global competitiveness of its fisheries sector while also ensuring a fair social transition for fishers and communities. 

Organised by ClientEarth, Oceana and Seas at Risk, this event is part of the larger Ocean Week in Brussels—a critical moment for advancing ocean sustainability in EU policy discussions.

Speakers will include MEP Caroline Roose, scientific experts Didier Gascuel, and Frederieke Ziegler, who will share their insights on sustainable fishing and the sector's transition. 

Read more here on the Ocean Week website

Register/RSVP here

Seafood New Zealand and Aquaculture New Zealand have been collaborating with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) to address concerns that New Zealand's seafood exporters might not be fully utilizing the tariff reductions or eliminations available under various free trade agreements (FTAs).

In a recent press release, Seafood New Zealand stated:

"We have conducted a thorough review of trade data and are pleased to report that any issues in this area are relatively minor. In fact, it appears that the majority of our seafood exports are successfully entering their markets with the benefits provided by FTAs."

There are a few exceptions in certain specialized product lines (such as extracts and powders) and niche markets where preferential tariff treatment has not always been claimed. Seafood New Zealand and Aquaculture New Zealand are now ensuring that relevant exporters have the necessary information to enable their importers to fully utilize the available preferential tariff treatments.

It is important to note that it is the importer, not the exporter, who claims these benefits. However, New Zealand exporters may be able to negotiate better prices with their importing agents by leveraging the tariff-free status that the FTAs provide.

Representatives from the Association of Purse Seine Owners of Galicia (Acerga), Stolt Sea Farm, Cassua, Pescados Vixa, Fesba and Porto-Muíños went to a place as far away as Singapore to try to conquer oriental palates with their products. These were the Galician organisations and companies that travelled to the Asian country to participate in the Seafood Asia Expo, a fair that brought together more than 4,370 professionals from 77 countries and which hosted more than 360 exhibitors from 41 countries.

Among the showcases that were on display at the twelfth edition of the event was that of the Consellería do Mar, which set up a pavilion to promote Galician fish, shellfish and canned goods in the Asian market and which gave shelter to six companies from the community.

Source: LaVozdeGalicia

A team of researchers from the Hassan II University of Casablanca, Morocco, and the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, has characterized in an article published in the journal Biocatalysis and Agricultural Biotechnology eight marine bacteria isolated in the deep Atlantic of Morocco, which have proven to be a source of natural bioactive compounds useful in aquaculture.

These bacteria are Alteromonas hispánica, Vibrio sp, Pseudoalteromonas sp, Cobetia marina, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, Planococcus maritimus, Idiomarina sp, Pseudoalteromonas issachenkonii. The most promising, according to the researchers, is Alteromonas hispánica (strain B-35) since it was the one that showed the strongest antibacterial activity against the five aquaculture pathogens evaluated in the study: Vibrio angularum, Photobacterium damselae subsp. damselae, Aeromonas salmonicida, Edwarsiella tarda, Lactococcus garvieae.

These pathogens, as explained in the article, are related to serious diseases in fish such as hemorrhagic septicemia, necrosis and organ damage, which can lead to high mortality rates in fish species.

Source: MisPeces

The Norges Sildesalgslag Association set a record on Monday with a daily turnover of NOK 333.3 million (U$D 30,8M), mainly driven by mackerel fishing in the NØS.

On Monday 9 September, a new turnover record was set at Sildelaget, with NOK 333.3 million turnover in one day. Mainly driven by mackerel fishing in the Norwegian economic zone. 

It is also important to note that it is very positive that the fishing takes place in the Norwegian economic zone.

Photo: Eivind Sævik/EMSPhoto

The forecasts for mackerel fishing thus look promising, with 121,000 tonnes already fished out of this year's quota of 237,907 tonnes. This is significantly more than at the same time last year, when only 61,000 tonnes of mackerel had been fished as of 10 September, of which 59,000 tonnes in the NØS. The fishing in NØS in 2024 as of 10 September is therefore double what it was in 2023.

There are now around 116,600 tonnes left before this year's quota is filled. In the UK zone, Norwegian vessels can fish up to 123,000 tonnes in 2024, but this fishing has not yet started. 

Norway's Norges Sildesalgslag  Association would otherwise like to praise both the fishermen and the buyers for the solid effort put in so far in the mackerel season.

Source: Norges Sildesalgslag (translated from original in Norwegian)