Bakkafrost and MEST Shipyard have signed a contract on the construction of a fully electric workboat. The contract was signed at Bakkafrost’ s headquarters at Glyvrar.

The workboat is solely based on electric power from batteries and will be charged during hours with maximal “green” power production.

Regin Jacobsen, CEO at Bakkafrost, is pleased with the signing of the contract.

“At Bakkafrost we have a goal to reduce our GHG-emissions by 50% by 2030. We continuously set ourselves ambitious goals regarding our environmental impact, and thus we are continuously looking for visionary projects that contribute to the green transition.

With innovation and technological development as its flag, Grupo Eurored develops comprehensive solutions of a sustainable nature aimed at the aquaculture industry backed by the highest standards of safety and aquaculture quality. Recently, and with more than 45 years of experience in fishing and aquaculture behind it, the Group has started in its new facilities in Redondela (Pontevedra) a series of very significant construction improvements in anchoring and mooring systems for offshore aquaculture, " capable of withstanding the scourge of storms with full guarantee ”.

To offer these guarantees of anchoring and frameworks in offshore conditions and with the purpose of determining the loads and safety factors of the physical means, as explained by Eurored "mechanical tensile tests are periodically carried out on certified test benches".

Source: iPac.acuicultura | Read the full article here

COVID-19 and its “serious” effects on the fisheries and aquaculture sector are to a large extent centering the debates taking place in the framework of the 34th meeting of COFI, the FAO Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture, which runs until Friday. The delegations addressed a new report on the impact of the pandemic on fishing from which it can be inferred that, once the official statistics are closed, a decrease in fisheries and aquaculture production will be certified.

At the outset, the report indicates that "fish supply, consumption and commercial revenues for 2020 are expected to have decreased due to restrictions.

Source: Industrias Pesqueras | Read the full article here

Subway is vigorously defending the tuna is uses in its sandwiches and wraps after a class action lawsuit filed in late January claimed that the massive sandwich chain’s sandwiches do not contain any of the fish.

Subway’s tuna products contain “a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, [which] have been blended together by (Subway) to imitate the appearance of tuna,” according to the lawsuit, which was filed on 21 January in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, Legal Newsline reported.

Plaintiffs Karen Dhanowa and Nilima Amin do not specify what the mystery meat contains, if not tuna.

Author: Christine Blank / SeafoodSource | Read the full article here

Investment planned in Murmansk region.

In a press release on Monday, Russia Prime Minister Mikhail Misjustin has signed a decree related to the plans for six large state-backed projects in the Russian Arctic. One of these projects is a salmon and trout breeding facility in the Murmansk region.

According to the government, the state subsidy for each of the projects will be up to 20 per-cent. One of the prerequisites is that the project in question costs at least 300 million rubles, which is around EUR 3.2 million.

Author: Stian Olsen / SalmonBusiness | Read the full article here

A way of creating ‘designer’ algae that could increase the efficiency of production of shellfish larvae for the aquaculture industry has been developed by scientists in Scotland.

The Scottish mussel aquaculture industry currently produces around 8,000 tonnes a year using wild larvae and is therefore reliant on a successful spawning year. This method is also a limiting factor in the expansion of the industry, which has the potential to become a major part of Scotland’s economy.

However, scientists at the Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS) have discovered a new way of farming larvae in a hatchery by feeding them with algae which have been selected and grown in a laboratory for optimal growth.

Source: The Fish Site | Read the full article here

The NFFO has hit back at the Marine Management Organisation’s announced intention to outlaw towed gears in the Dogger Bank SAC and the majority of three other offshore MPAs, describing the move as a ‘further sell-out of fishing’.

Describing the announcement as a shocking development, with a decision following zero consultation with those affected, NFFO assistant chief executive Dale Rodmell commented that the knock-on effects of what he called a brutal approach will lead to displaced fishing effort.

‘We have worked with managers and government conservation advisors for more than a decade on this site. 

Author: Quentin Bates / FiskerForum | Read the full article here

The Russian Fishery Company (RFC) has begun supplying pollock fillet to the markets of China and Japan.

The first contract for the supply of 700 tonnes to China was signed in 2020. This year, another contract was signed for 1,000 tonnes, and an agreement on the supply of 2.5 thousand tonnes to China is being prepared. The first 600 tonnes have been contracted for the Japanese market and in 2022, RFC plans to supply at least 5,000 tonnes to Asia.

RFC is also expanding its presence in the domestic market supplying around 1,000 tonnes of fillet in 2020 and aiming to increase to 5,000 tonnes in 2021/22.

Source: Worldfishing | Read the full article here

Neil Hornby takes charge of the UK Center for Environmental Sciences, Fisheries and Aquaculture

Neil Hornby has taken over from him as the new CEO of CEFAS (Center for Environmental Sciences, Fisheries and Aquaculture), the UK scientific body. Neil joins Cefas with more than 20 years of experience in DEFRA (Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), where he held the position of Director of Marine and Fisheries since 2016.

The main challenge facing the new head of CEFAS will be to ensure that the research center continues to provide the UK government with the science and 'baseline' evidence necessary to support the achievement of government objectives for animal health, fisheries and marine environment, explains the Government. An objective that, after 'Brexit', acquires even more relevance.

Source: Fisheries Industries | Read the full article here

Seafood exporters are predicting a recovery in the Chinese seafood market this year after a bruising 2020.

China’s economic outlook improved last week, after it reported overall GDP growth of 2.3 percent for 2020, after a strong recovery in the fourth quarter. The country has weathered the last year better than most large Western economies, which spent far more on support to laid-off workers, compared to a Chinese emphasis on virus control measures. Whereas the U.S. economy declined by 23 percent in GDP compared to the same period last year and the Eurozone economy declined by 21 percent. 

Author: Mark Godfrey / SeafoodSource | Read the full article here