Photo : Daniel Katla / Norges Sildesalgslag

The Norwegian Pelagic Fishing Course in Week 46

NORWAY
Tuesday, November 21, 2023, 01:00 (GMT + 9)

Herring are fished as far east as Alta, and positive sprat fishing in the Oslofjord.

NVG herring:

Many have finished their herring quota and this means that the weekly quantity is going down. Last week we had 24,000 tonnes registered. And it is the coastal group that contributes the most this week with 13,700 t, from the ring net we have 5,500 t and foreign boats contribute 4,800 t.

Of the coast's quantity, 5,300 t are fished by the smallest boats that deliver directly to the lead boat. Here, six different guide vessels have been operating in the fjords.

The boats fished at the very beginning of the week on Kvænangen, and then moved to Øksfjord in Loppa municipality. Later in the week, the fleet moved further east and into the Altafjorden. We haven't had herring fishing this far east since the herring population picked up again in the 80s, so the trend of the herring being further north and east is clearly shown.

The size of the herring in the north is in the range 279-312 grams, a weighed cut is 295 g.

Photo : Daniel Katla / Norges Sildesalgslag

This is a super size for filleting, and then for the best product, which is a skinless fillet.

Of the foreign quantity, a Faroese boat has had two catches with a total of 2,500 t from Icelandic waters. The herring here is larger and consists of older year classes, where the last catch had an average of 350 g. The herring is now moving east, and it is expected that it will enter Faroese waters before it then goes east into the Smutthavet or the Norwegian zone.

There are now only 21,300 t left of the quota of 388,490 t, and this will normally be fished in a good week. We therefore expect little herring fishing in December.

Mackerel:

We got the autumn's lowest quantity of mackerel at around 1,800 tonnes. Apart from some coincidences from Norwegian boats, this is a contribution from two foreign boats that have fished 1,700 t east of Shetland.

Little mackerel is expected in the future.

North Sea herring:

A number of boats have been out fishing the remaining quota of North Sea herring and a total of 2,800 tonnes were caught last week. Of this quantity, 2,000 t have been sold for consumption.

The fishing has mainly taken place in the British zone, and there have been variable sizes of the herring. The lowest average has been 110 g and the highest with an average weight of 191 g.

The quota is, so to speak, taken with a remainder of a modest 3,300 t out of a quota of 117,171 t.

Coastal sprat:

There was more speed in sprat fishing on the coast, and especially in the Oslo Fjord. Of a total quantity of 316 t, almost 280 t are taken from there. The remainder is fished in the Sognefjord.

The splash in the Oslo Fjord is, as usual, larger than in the west. The sizes here are in the range 60 - 83 pcs/kg, which is then suitable for seasoning.

From Sogn, it is sprinkling for canning, with sizes in the area of ​​95 pcs/kg.

We have seen in recent years that sprat fishing has been best in late autumn and early winter, so we can hope for good sprat weeks ahead.

Horse mackerel:

This fishery has also picked up in the fjords in Rogaland and Vestland. From five different boats, 120 tonnes of large horse mackerel have been fished, where the sizes vary from 400 to 550 g.

Fishing on "Kanten" and the Faroe Islands zone:

Last week, from six different boats, we registered 2,100 t of blue whiting, 415 t of stream herring, and around 60 t of norway pout.

A couple of boats have been fishing for cod in Faroe waters, and on Sunday evening "Endre Dyrøy" reported 900 t from there.

Author/ Source: Kenneth Garvik / Norges Sildesalgslag (translated from original in norwegian)

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