LAUWERSOOG – Until the end of the year, the OL 7 will spend one week each month trying to catch shrimp with pots. This involves research by Wageningen Marine Research as part of the ‘Passive Shrimp Fishery’ project in the Wadden Sea.

Due to extremely poor catches, fellow shrimp fishers returned to port early again last week. It’s a waste of time and fuel to continue. For the OL 7 of skipper Folkert Sloot, it meant peace on the water to fish the first week with pots undisturbed. Lines were shot from Schiermonnikoog to the dike near Lauwersoog, from deeper water to almost dry land.

Three different pots are being tested, with bait (herring) and light to try to lure shrimp. A total of 180 pieces. The complete rig fits nicely on a trailer.

,,We mainly gathered ideas on how to technically improve the next test week to achieve an ideal pot. At the moment there are very few shrimp, so little meaningful can be said about catches. Whether it is commercially viable to fish for shrimp passively can only be said at the end of the project when you have fished all seasons. We counted shrimp per pot, and there turned out to be significant differences between pots. The key to this seems to be the type of bait. In this test week we also had shrimp catches without crabs, which gives hope for the seasons with many shrimp,’’ reacts WMR researcher Pieke Molenaar.

Source: visserijnieuws.nl

On March 4, 2024, the Russian government nationalized assets belonging to Alexey Kozlov's "crab empire." The Arbitration Court of Primorsky Krai transferred control of three Far Eastern companies, owned by Kozlov, to JSC Far Eastern Fishery Management Company (DRUK), a state-controlled entity. Grammy LLC and Tetis LLC will officially come under DRUK's control on January 31, 2025, followed by Tefis CJSC on February 20, 2025.

The Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) of Russia had previously determined that Tefis CJSC was under foreign investor control. Alexey Kozlov, co-owner of the companies, has resided in the United States since 2008, a factor that triggered numerous legal challenges. In mid-2023, the Federal Agency for Fisheries (Rosrybolovstvo) removed Tefis CJSC from the list of Kamchatka crab quota holders. Subsequent monitoring by the Prosecutor General's Office confirmed the presence of foreign control within the fisheries sector, despite attempts to conceal this information.

This nationalization follows similar actions against other fish producers, including Oleg Kan and Dmitry Pashov, whose assets were also transferred to DRUK. This trend indicates an ongoing government policy of nationalizing resources in strategically significant sectors of the economy.

Newsan, leader in the Argentine fishing industry, and Profand, leader in the Spanish fishing industry, announce the construction of a state-of-the-art freezer trawler, the most modern of its kind, intended for the capture of black hake and other species in Argentine and adjacent waters. The project, which will be carried out at the Spanish shipyard Nodosa, which designed it and which has recently delivered several technologically very advanced vessels, represents a step towards renewing the national fishing fleet, improving operational efficiency and increasing the company's productive capacity.

Source: EuropaAzul l Read the full article here

This International Women's Day, we’re turning the spotlight on the powerhouse women redefining ocean food.

From its start online in 2021 (then called Women in Aquaculture) our programme to promote women in the seafood space has expanded. Our first in-person studio took place in Bali 2022 and we have just finished our second Women in Ocean Food Innovation Studio in La Paz, Mexico.

Each programme has brought together extraordinary cohorts of female entrepreneurs - women who are making waves by innovating, scaling and challenging the status quo in aquaculture.

Author:  Dr Jessica Giannoumis / The Fish Site l Read the full article here

BioMar reports record profitability in 2024 despite declining volumes.

BioMar has reported its strongest financial performance to date, achieving record profitability in 2024 despite a decline in revenue and volumes. The company’s EBITDA increased by 18% across its consolidated businesses, reflecting a strategic focus on operational efficiencies and portfolio optimisation.

CEO Carlos Diaz attributed the improvement to targeted commercial decisions, stating, “We have driven a meticulous focus on building a strong business, and the increase in profitability is the result of an unwavering strategic focus on optimising our product portfolio, combined with a series of operational excellence measures.”

Source : SalmonBusiness l Read the full article here

Global seafood trading and marketing group Iceland Seafood International has reported higher earnings and profits for 2024 and during the final quarter of last year.

It was a year in which salmon prices went from very high to low halfway through which affected trading, ISI said.

The 2024 profit before tax from regular operations was above forecast at ISK 1.1bn (almost £7.5m) which was a significant improvement from the previous year.

Author: Vince McDonagh / Fish Farmer l Read the full article here

Millions of young eels (glass eels) were released into the Randmeren lakes in the Netherlands to boost the declining eel population. 

Led by the DUPAN Foundation, 2.5 million eels, originating from French estuaries and certified for sustainability, were carefully checked and distributed. This release aims to increase the number of adult eels that can migrate to the Sargasso Sea for spawning. 

The initiative, funded by the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture and the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund, is part of a broader effort to comply with European Eel Regulation and ensure eel population recovery. 

The release follows a positive trend in young eel numbers on European coasts since 2011 and a reported exceptionally large influx this year.

Source: vismagazine.nl

From left to right: Tom Gores, Chairman and CEO of Platinum; Alberto Freire, Executive Chairman of Iberconsa; and Juan Luis Ramírez, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Iberconsa representing Portobello.

Iberconsa is beginning to consider its future after Platinum Equity, following six years under the control of the American fund. The Galician group, currently the second-largest operator in the frozen fish sector in Spain by commercialized volume according to the TOP 100 Alimarket, is studying the best formula to go to market, although the process has not been formally or officially initiated.

We reveal the timelines Iberconsa is considering to begin setting sail with Platinum and chart a new course. As it did in 2019, it is likely to once again move ahead of Nueva Pescanova, which would repeat what would be the largest transfer in the history of the fishing sector in our country. What potential buyers are emerging? How is its EBITDA evolving? We exclusively analyze the current situation of Iberconsa.

Read the full story here.

The majority of squid are caught in the southern part of the North Sea, but the increase is greatest in the Skagerrak.

In the first two months of the year, Danish fishermen have landed 105 tons of squid worth 6.8 million kroner, as reported by Fiskeri Tidende.

During the same period last year, Danish fishermen landed 76 tons of squid worth 5.1 million kroner.

The majority of the squid are caught in the southern part of the North Sea, where landings have increased from 67 tonnes to 74 tonnes.

In the Skagerrak, landings have increased from 4 tons to 26 tons.

The squid caught in the southern part of the North Sea have mainly landed in the Dutch ports of Vlissingen and Ijmuiden, while the majority of the squid from the Skagerrak have landed in Hirtshals.