Oslo - Nordic Aqua, a global pioneer in land-based Atlantic salmon farming, with its first farm located in Ningbo, China, has today entered a short-term credit facility of EUR 5.8 million with DNB ASA. The facility has a tenor of up to four months and is designed to provide the necessary liquidity to support the company’s ongoing operations and strategic growth initiatives.

This credit facility comes at a pivotal time for Nordic Aqua as the company continues to implement corrective actions in response to recent challenges in its operations. The company remains focused on addressing the geosmin issue that affected its production in July. The funds will be used to maintain operational stability, invest in essential capex for long-term improvements, and support our ongoing buildout until the upcoming equity financing of approximately NOK 250 million planned for later this year and supported by several large shareholders.

"We are committed to ensuring that Nordic Aqua remains financially robust and capable of delivering on our strategic objectives", CEO Ragnar Joensen comments.

"This credit facility will enable us to navigate the current challenges while continuing to focus on our long-term vision of sustainable growth and a strong market position for premium quality Atlantic salmon to the Chinese market under the Nordic PureAtlantic brand", he adds.

The European Commission (EC) has proposed cutting salmon and sprat catches in Baltic waters by 2025.

At the same time, it proposed reducing the allocations of by-catches of cod, that is, accidental catches that are not the target of fishing activity, given the "poor state" of these reserves.

On the other hand, Brussels proposed increasing herring fishing and maintaining that of plaice.

In particular, Brussels today called for a 36% reduction in salmon fishing in the main Baltic basin and a 20% reduction in the Gulf of Finland.

The Community Executive specified in a statement that the state of the different river salmon populations in the main Baltic basin "varies considerably". While some remain "weak", others are in "good condition".

For this reason, the Commission proposes adjusting the fishing possibilities and the rules that they entail, prohibiting recreational fishing of farmed salmon, "which inevitably also causes" the death of wild salmon.

For sprat, Brussels proposed a 42% reduction by 2025.

It also proposed reducing allocations for by-catches of cod in the western Baltic by 73% and for cod in the eastern Baltic by 68% because stocks are still in a "poor state".

Source: efeagro

Comparing to male, women's participation in direct fishing in the sea or river is low, they play a significant role in the subsequent stages. However, women in coastal areas are depending on fishing in the cannel, open water-bodies, river etc. The recognition given to men is not equally extended to women. As a result, 96% of cardholder fisherfolk are men, while only 4% are women.

Despite this disparity, women spend a large part of their day cutting, sorting, and processing fish. It is essential to acknowledge and recognise the contributions of women involved in fish harvesting and processing.

These views were presented at a seminar titled "Policy Review for Fisherfolk in Climate Change Zones," jointly organised by the Department of Fisheries and Badabon Sangho at the International Mother Language Institute in Segunbagicha, Dhaka

The Business Standard was the media partner of the event, which was moderated by communication specialist and columnist Shahana Huda.

Stakeholders from both the government and private sectors discussed the current government policy and its potential reforms concerning the socio-economic development of men and women involved in the country's fishery sector..

Source: The Business Standard

Cape Town, South Africa-based Sea Harvest Group increased both its earnings and revenue in the first six months of 2024, despite dealing with low catch rates and the sinking of one of its fishing vessels. 

In its recently released unaudited results, the company posted revenue of ZAR 3.3 billion (USD 185 million, EUR 166 million) in the six months ending 30 June 2024, up from ZAR 3.2 billion (USD 179 million, EUR 161 million) in the same period of 2023. Gross profit increased to ZAR 944 million (USD 52 million, EUR 47 million), up from ZAR 777 million (USD 43 million, EUR 39 million).

Operating profit for Sea Harvest also increased in H1 2024, reaching ZAR 310 million (USD 17 million, EUR 15 million), up from the ZAR 252 million (USD 14 million, EUR 12 million) it posted in 2023.

Author: Chris Chase / SeafoodSource | Read the full article here

New UK fisheries minister Daniel Zeichner observed firsthand how farm-raised salmon is benefiting coastal communities during a visit to a leading Shetland producer. The Labour MP toured Scottish Sea Farms’ Vidlin salmon farm and processing facility at Gremista, Lerwick, which, along with other sites, provides well-paid year-round jobs across the islands. Mr. Zeichner praised the sector’s role in supporting local communities and emphasized the importance of working with aquaculture to strengthen food security.

Source: FishFarmingExpert | Read the full article here

One of the UK’s oldest family-run fishing businesses will be showcased in the Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) Sustainable Seafood September 2024 campaign.

By highlighting their benefits to both people and the environment, the MSC hopes to introduce a whole new generation to cockles from Leigh-on-Sea. The campaign will include a cockle recipes, information about the fishery and its sustainability successes, as well as interviews with the fishermen themselves.

Source: FishFocus | Read the full article here

Turning bacteria into bacteriocin factories that are used to eliminate other bacteria that cause infections. This is the starting point of Bac4RumA, an ambitious international project led by the Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA) from the Ruminant Production Laboratory in Caldes de Montbui and from the Aquaculture Group at La Rápita.

Bac4RumA is thus focused on finding an alternative to antibiotics that is low cost and for use in animals, and that can be manufactured and used in developing countries. The resulting product will be tested on ruminant farms and aquaculture farms in Nigeria

“The IRTA Ruminant Production programme has been working for some time to develop molecules that allow us to treat animals with bacterial infections to minimise the use of antibiotics and now, within the framework of this project, we want to develop a new generation of low-cost antimicrobials by producing extracts rich in bacteriocins,” explains Anna Arís Giralt, researcher on this programme and coordinator of Bac4RumA.

Source: Ipac

The summer began with declines in volume and value in Portuguese markets. According to data from the Monthly Bulletin of Agriculture and Fisheries, corresponding to August 2024, 11,086 tonnes were landed in June, 18.5% less. The figure confirms the negative trend of the year, as in May the reduction had already been 16.5%.

Catches of marine fish reached 9,905 tonnes, 18.8% less, mainly due to the fall in mackerel: only 1,728 tonnes were landed, 65.1% less.

Source: IndustriasPesqueras | Read the full article here

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has created a major disruption in the global economy, severely affecting supply chains in many areas, including agriculture and energy.

Putin's military aggression prompted the US and its Western allies to impose harsh economic sanctions on Russia, restrictions that, while not having the full effect expected, have changed the rules of the game in international trade. In this context, Alaska's fishing industry is losing strength, as much of its strength was based on trade relations with Russia. But the war in Ukraine has severed those ties, and now there are companies in the sector that are closing the door on the cold American region.

On August 19, Whittier Seafood, a seafood supplier, declared bankruptcy. Since its founding in 2017, this company has operated a fish processing plant in one of the largest inlets of the Gulf of Alaska, called Prince William Sound. There are many exquisite varieties of salmon, shrimp and clams to be found there, although much of the processed fish was supplied by Marine Fishing International (MFI), Whittier's sister company, through fishing firms in Russian waters, home to the best king crabs in the world. However, the war in Ukraine has thrown this entire supply chain into disarray, plunging Whittier Seafood into bankruptcy.

Source: ElEconomista

A recent study by Dr. Ganesh Kumar and co-authors involving aquaculture researchers from 11 different institutions and published in the Journal of the World Aquaculture Society discusses the economic contributions of aquaculture in the United States, and the linkages of aquaculture farming businesses with other economic sectors and how policy decisions that affect aquaculture result in economic ripples throughout local, regional, and national economies.

“U.S. aquaculture farms are highly diversified raising multitudes of species ranging from various foodfish, mollusks, crustaceans, baitfish, sportfish, ornamental fish and other aquatic plants and animals,” Dr. Ganesh Kumar, associate research professor at Mississippi State University and lead author of the study, told the Advocate. “The annual contribution of domestic aquaculture farms to the U.S. economy has not been estimated since 1996, and we employed primary farm-level data on expenditures and outputs to develop economic impact of U.S. aquaculture. Results of this research show that U.S. aquaculture farms contribute about $4 billion and support over 22,000 jobs annually.”

Author / Source: Darryl Jory | globalseafood