Colombo: A new initiative worth US$ 1.33 million (around Rs. 436 million) has been launched to restore livelihoods and boost freshwater fisheries in Sri Lanka’s Eastern Province. An agreement was signed at the Japanese Embassy in Colombo on May 29.

Financed by the Government of Japan with technical assistance from the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the project assists communities affected by recent extreme weather, including Cyclone Ditwah, which devastated local income streams.

Key Highlights of the Initiative:

• Modernising Aquaculture: Introduction of cage culture systems by deploying 200 fish cages across 30 selected reservoirs, alongside barrage netting systems.
• Infrastructure Upgrades: Upgrading the Inginiyagala Fish Breeding Centre and training local fisheries organisations.
• Direct Support: Providing free fingerlings and feed for the first production cycle to reduce pressure on the struggling coastal sector.

Fisheries Minister Ramalingam Chandrasekar called the programme a vital step in modernising the industry, while Japanese Ambassador Akio Isomata reaffirmed Japan’s commitment to <

POND ISLAND — In a major step toward regional food security, representatives from Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, Saba, St. Eustatius, and St. Maarten signed a renewed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Friday.

Operating under the framework of the Dutch Caribbean Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Alliance (DC ALFA), the agreement formalizes long-term collaboration through 2035. It targets critical areas including sustainable agriculture, fisheries development, climate resilience, and regional policy coordination.

The high-level signatories securing this future-oriented framework included:

• Geoffrey Wever (Aruba’s Minister of Finance, Economic Affairs, and Primary Sector)
• Clark Abraham (Bonaire Commissioner)
• Tyrone Boekhoudt (Curaçao Minister of Health, Environment and Nature)
• Bruce Zagers (Saba Commissioner)
• Rechelline Leerdam (Sint Eustatius Commissioner)
• Grisha Heyliger-Marten (Sint Maarten’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of TEATT)

This updated pact builds directly upon the initial foundational agreement established in 2023.

TAISHAN — To Lu Zice, discarded oyster shells are treasures. Taishan, a county-level city administered by Jiangmen in Guangdong province, generates over 100,000 metric tons of waste oyster shells annually, threatening the environment.

Photo: ChinaDaily

To solve this, Guangdong Bevan Biology Co, founded by Lu, processes 50,000 to 60,000 tons of shells annually, yielding products worth over 20 million yuan ($2.9 million). Over the next three years, Lu plans to scale production to 100,000 tons, valued at over 100 million yuan. The company plans to expand further to process 150,000 to 200,000 tons annually, effectively eliminating Jiangmen's oyster waste.

Collaborating with the Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Lu recently partnered with Zhu Ronghua, Chairman of Qi Yong Tang Health Technology (Guangdong) Co. In March, they joined forces to convert aquaculture waste into high-value items like soil conditioners and ecological powder coatings. Historically used in building materials since the Tang and Ming dynasties, oyster shell products now drive a sustainable, full-scale industrial chain along the South China coast.

Japan’s bluefin tuna hauls are surging nationwide, forcing officials to impose strict restrictions or suspend fishing entirely as some prefectures race toward their annual limits at an unprecedented pace.

According to the Fisheries Agency, the April catch of large bluefin tuna weighing 30 kilograms or more reached a staggering 320.7 tons. This figure marks a historic record for the month since the current management system began in 2018, nearly doubling the volume recorded the previous year.

Smaller bluefin tuna weighing less than 30 kilograms also hit record highs for April, increasing by 10.4 percent to 300.6 tons.

Pacific bluefin tuna fishing is managed under strict international agreements, which subject Japan's waters to annual catch quotas starting each fiscal year in April.

The rapid surge has put immediate pressure on local limits. Fukui and Toyama prefectures have already exhausted more than 50 percent of their quotas for large bluefin tuna, while Kochi has surpassed the 40-percent mark. For smaller tuna, Fukushima Prefecture has already burned through over 90 percent of its allocation, and Fukui is past 50 percent.

McGraw Seafood has successfully completed the installation of a new automated redfish processing line at its facility in New Brunswick, Canada, in partnership with Carsoe. The project marks a significant step forward in the company’s efforts to diversify production, safeguard product quality, and reduce manual handling—all within the constraints of an existing processing footprint.

The newly installed line spans the full process from raw material receiving through to automatic plate freezing. At its core is Carsoe’s double contact plate freezing technology, supported by a fully integrated downstream automation system. 

Source: Fish Focus | Read the full article here

KJ-Hydraulic joins the growing number of companies exhibiting in the Faroese Pavilion at this year’s IceFish, being held from 22-24 September.  

The company are experts in hydraulics and machinery, supplying and servicing equipment for the fishing and aquaculture industries. As one of the bigger machinery companies in the Faroe Islands, KJ-Hydraulic also supplies equipment and services to international markets, including Iceland, Scotland, Shetland, Denmark and Norway. A vital supplier to the Faroese fishing fleet for several years, KJ-Hydraulic has its headquarters in Kambsdalur

Source: Worldfishing | Read the full article here

A Swedish fish farm project which has been in the pipeline for almost nine years has finally been given the go-ahead.

The Norrbotten-Västerbotten Agricultural Society says it has received the environmental permit for what it calls “the new generation of fish farming”: a land-based fish farm producing char, based in the Arctic north of the country.

The facility in Sunderbyn, Luleå municipality is based in Norrbotten, Sweden’s most northerly county. The Society says it will meet record-high requirements for nitrogen purification in an Arctic climate.

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

The Andalusian fishing sector, primarily grouped under the Andalusia Federation of Fishing Associations (FAAPE), has unanimously re-elected José María Gallart García as president for the next four years.

The decision, adopted during the latest General Assembly held in Algeciras, ensures continuity in representing shipowners before the Regional Government of Andalusia, the Government of Spain, and the European Union. This renewal comes at a delicate time, as the EU proposes a 67% cut to fishing funds in the 2028-2034 Financial Framework.

The General Assembly also ratified Alonso Abreu Lozano as vice president for the Atlantic zone and Pedro Hernández Sáez for the Mediterranean zone.

Gallart, who has been involved in fishing associations since 1978 and has served as president of FAAPE since 2020, also holds the position of second vice president of the Spanish Fishing Confederation (CEPESCA), consolidating the Andalusian federation's key role in defending the sector at a national level.

A striking contrast has emerged in the Baltic Sea ecosystem. While cod remains in critical danger, populations of herring, sprat, and plaice are thriving.

According to the newly released 2027 biological advice from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), biologists are recommending a complete ban on cod fishing for next year. However, positive stock developments mean quota increases are recommended for three out of four herring stocks, as well as sprats and plaice.

Michael Andersen, chief consultant and biologist at the Danish Fisheries Association, notes that herring in the central Baltic, Gulf of Bothnia, and Gulf of Riga have improved significantly. He explains that these pelagic species live in the water column, escaping the severe oxygen depletion plaguing bottom-dwelling cod.

Conversely, herring from the Rügen stock in the western Baltic are still struggling. Andersen urges regulators to investigate environmental drivers—like pollution, climate change, and predation by seals and cormorants—rather than just limiting fishing for healthy species.