IN BRIEF - New Zealand: Members of black market cray fish poaching ring sentenced to home detention, community work
NEW ZEALAND
Thursday, March 23, 2023
Members of an East Coast black market crayfish poaching ring that netted thousands of dollars in illegal sales have been sentenced to home detention and community work.
The sentences, in the Whakatane District Court, follow a major Fisheries New Zealand investigation that ran from December 2020 to August 2021 into the illegal harvesting of thousands of crayfish from Mahia Peninsula, using falsified customary permits. The crayfish was sold on the black-market throughout Auckland, Kawerau, Tauranga, Gisborne, Wairoa, Mahia, and Napier.
Fisheries New Zealand regional compliance manager Jodie Cole says local iwi and marae leaders had no knowledge or involvement in the offending and are also victims of the deception.
"The blame for this offending lies squarely with the defendants."
The ringleaders, Martin Te Iwingaro Ernest Paul and his daughter Whareake Tamaku Paul (26), both of Kawerau, earlier pleaded guilty to a charge of selling 1,449 crayfish between September 2020 and August 2021 on the black-market for a total of $43,140.
Mr Paul received 9 months’ home detention and Ms Paul received 8 months home detention and 100 hours community work. A vehicle and a number of electronic devices used in the offending were also forfeit.
The ship will replace the flagship of the French fleet, the Charles de Gaulle, starting in 2038
French President Emmanuel Macron has officially launched the construction of the new aircraft carrier that will eventually replace the flagship of the French Navy, the Charles de Gaulle. The president himself announced the plans for the construction of this next-generation vessel in February 2023. At that time, French media, citing sources close to the project, estimated that the final phase would begin around 2031. The ultimate goal is for the new aircraft carrier to be ready for deployment by 2038, as confirmed this Sunday on her Twitter account by Defense Minister Catherine Vautin, the year the De Gaulle will be decommissioned.
Source: La Voz de Galicia | Read the full article here
MBA Chief Executive, Professor Willie Wilson, reflects on 2025.
December always brings with it one of the highlights of our calendar, the Annual General Meeting, and with it an invaluable moment to reflect on our science, our community and our impact. Despite what has been an undeniably challenging period for the wider world, the ocean and the academic sector, the MBA has continued to deliver.
Our?2025 Annual Report?captures this story in more detail and I would personally like to share a few highlights that illustrate the strength, ambition and impact of the MBA today.
Norway and Russia have reached an agreement on fishing quotas in 2026 for shared Barents Sea stocks, but the sanctioning of two major Russian companies by Norway continues to be a point of contention.
Norway and Russia have agreed to set a total quota for Northeast Arctic cod of 285,000 metric tons (MT), a decrease of 16 percent compared to the quota set for 2025. That proposal is a compromise between the Russian-Norwegian Arctic Fisheries Working Group number of 269,550 MT and a number from the Russian Research Institute of Fisheries and Oceanography (VNIRO) which proposed a much higher quota of 315,033 MT, which would have been an increase over the quota set for 2025.
Author: Chris Chase / SeafoodSource | Read the full article here
The three unions represented at the negotiating table for the national collective bargaining agreement for the fish and seafood canning industry (CIG, CCOO, and UGT) have broken off talks with employers following what they consider a "regressive proposal" that, they explain, "insists on changing the professional classification system so that nothing changes and aims for a real wage increase of 0.0%."
This was announced by the CIG, which demands a "clear and transparent" professional classification based on a job evaluation that avoids discretion and arbitrary classification decisions by companies, in addition to a 5% wage increase.
Source: iPac.aquaculture | Read the full article here
Shark scare at salmon farm as damage discovered in sea pen.
A swarm of sharks has ripped into a salmon farm in Norway, tearing holes in nets and sparking fears thousands of fish may have escaped.
The dramatic incident unfolded at a SalMarsite in Trøndelag, Norway where operators discovered extensive damage to a sea pen after repeated shark attacks.Regulators say the predators struck under cover of darkness, forcing the company to urgently move fish out of the damaged enclosure and deploy emergency recapture nets.
Source: SalmonBusiness | Read the full article here
A ban on salmon farm in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, has been overturned by a single vote in the region’s legislature, according to reports.
The local government in Tierra del Fuego passed the law in 2021, but regional legislator Agustín Coto – now a senator - moved to revoke the ban in the face of an economic squeeze. Tourism in Tierra del Fuego has slowed, and the region’s manufacturing sector is facing increasing pressures.Argentina’s current president, Javier Milei, also favours deregulating the nation’s industries to boost growth.
Source: fishfarmingexpert | Read the full article here
FISA presented the preliminary program for the AquaSur 2026 Congress, featuring three days focused on innovation, sustainability, genetics, and technologies for aquaculture.
The thirteenth edition of AquaSur will take place from March 24 to 26, 2026, in the Los Lagos Region of Chile. The exhibition is considered the leading meeting point in the Southern Hemisphere for companies dedicated to aquaculture and related products.
The event organizers, FISA, part of the French group GL events, have high expectations for this edition.
Source: MundoAcuicola | Read the full article here
Norway has seen another salmon farming acquisition, as the industry continues to consolidate.
Alsaker AS has entered into a binding agreement to purchase 100% of the shares in the rival Bolaks Group AS, creating by far the largest privately owned aquaculture operations in Western Norway.
Alsaker and Bolaks , both private businesses, will together have over 25,000 tonnes of MTB in the areas PO2 and PO3 and will constitute a locally owned aquaculture operator with a strong foothold in many local communities in the west of the country.
Author: Vince McDonagh / Fish Farmer | Read the full article here
A ban on salmon farming in the Argentinian part of Tierra del Fuego has been overturned by the local government this week.
The legislature of the region voted by just a single vote to modify Law 1,355, the pioneering 2021 legislation that prohibited salmon farming in the sea, rivers, lakes and lagoons of the province.
The outcome was received with dismay and frustration by local chefs, artisanal fisherpeople, environmental groups and residents who had mobilised in recent weeks to defend the ban.
Source: The Fish Site | Read the full article here
Indonesian shrimp exports declined sharply in October, largely due to recalls of Indonesian products which were found, upon their arrival in the United States, to contain traces of Cesium-137 (Cs-137), a radioactive material.
The first findings of Cs-137 came in August, when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an advisory to the public not to eat, sell, or serve imported shrimp processed by Indonesia-based PT. Bahari Makmur Sejati, a supplier to some Walmart locations.
After two months of stalled shipments and trade challenges, the FDA reached an agreement with the nation to resume imports after its Cs-137 task force identified the source of the contamination and cleared it.
Author: Erin Spampinato / SeafoodSource | Read the full article here
Umami Bioworks Unlocks High-Value Species for Regenerative Skincare Singapore
Singapore-based biotech leader Umami Bioworks has announced a major expansion of its Marine Radiance™ platform, moving beyond traditional sources to produce cultivated Polydeoxyribonucleotide (P...