Grieg Seafood is dealing with the aftermath of a large oil spill at one of its farm sites in British Columbia, Canada.

Up to 8,000 litres are reported to have escaped at Esperanza Inlet in the province, it has been confirmed.

According to reports, the spill was caused by "human error during fuel transfer" on a floating concrete platform on Saturday 14 December. The incident was reported to the Environmental Emergency Branch the same day.

Aerial and ground surveillance has now shown a visible sheen to the north and west toward Centre Island from the spill site, with smaller patches observed to the south and east toward Steamer Point

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

Research on the adaptation of artisanal fishermen to climate change

Researcher Pedro Romero Maltrana presented a study at the XXVI Annual Congress of Agrarian Economics on how Chilean artisanal fishermen are facing climate change. His research focused on productive diversification as a strategy to reduce the vulnerability of these coastal communities.

The study analyzed data from 1998 to 2020 using econometric models to assess how external factors, such as climate and economics, influence decisions to diversify their activities. The results show that diversifying into other areas of fishing and related activities helps improve fishermen's income, mitigating the impacts of climate change. However, an inverse relationship was also found between diversification into fishing and into completely different sectors.

IFOP research highlights the importance of productive diversification as a key tool for the sustainability of artisanal fishermen's livelihoods and for the sustainable management of marine resources in a context of climate change.

The Russian Ministry of Agriculture has developed a draft order to limit industrial cod fishing in the Far Eastern fisheries basin in 2025. The document can be found on the portal of draft regulatory legal acts.

In particular, this concerns  a ban on  catching Pacific cod using bottom trawls and snurrevads in the West Bering Sea zone and the Karaginsky subzone until April 15, 2025.

The same order proposes to limit cod fishing using longline gear in the above-mentioned fishing zones until March 31 of next year.

Public discussions of the project will continue until the end of December.

In December last year, the Ministry of Agriculture  banned  industrial cod fishing with all types of fishing gear in the West Bering Sea and Chukchi fishing zones. The restrictions were in effect until April 15 of this year.

Several foreign vessels have begun to opt out of Denmark when they are going to sell their landings.

"It is deeply worrying. The foreign landings are vital for the port of Hanstholm, and if they disappear overnight, we are talking about massive losses of revenue and jobs", says Jesper Kongsted to Nordjyske.

In recent weeks, the auction in Hanstholm has not received fish from a handful of French vessels. They usually land around 80 tons of fish every 10 days. Now they are landing in the Faroe Islands or Scotland instead.

And the auctioneer understands the French fishermen well. Because with a CO2 tax, foreign fishermen will pay up to 15 million kroner more to fill up with diesel fuel in Hanstholm from next year.

Jesper Kongsted states that he has received the same message from Swedish, German and Scottish fishermen – they will choose other ports in the future.

Of the approximately 32,500 tons of fish received in Hanstholm each year, 22,000 tons are landed by foreign boats. Therefore, it will have irreparable consequences if the tax is not postponed until alternative solutions to diesel oil are found – solutions that do not exist at the time of writing.

"In six months we can go from being a leader to being completely insignificant. I simply cannot emphasize how serious this is. And we are not in the 11th hour. We are one minute from closing time", the auctioneer tells Nordjyske.

Chilean prosecutor moves to formalize fraud case against former Australis owner and executives.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office of Chile has initiated formal proceedings against Isidoro Quiroga, the former owner of salmon farming firm Australis, and two former executives.

On 6 December, Chile’s prosecutor’s office formally charged Quiroga, former Australis president Martín Guiloff, and former administration and finance manager Santiago Garretón with crimes of fraud and disloyal administration, following a court authorization to review emails and investigate allegations 

Source: SalmonBusiness l Read the full article here

A San Fransisco, California, U.S.A.-based seafood distributor has issued an urgent recall of certain Fanny Bay, Buckley Bay, and Royal Miyagi oysters due to multiple confirmed illnesses from norovirus contamination.

The oysters, originally sourced from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada-based Pacific Northwest Shellfish and Richmond, British Columbia, Canada-based Union Bay Seafood by S&M Shellfish were distributed to retailers and distributors throughout the U.S.

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

Income would benefit areas where the fish are produced.

Miguel Ángel Calisto, a politician representing a fish farming area in Chile, has proposed a production tax equivalent to US $0.03 per kilo on harvested salmon to benefit the areas where it is produced, reports Fish Farming Expert's Chilean sister site, Salmonexpert.cl.

Calisto is a member of the Chilean Congress’s lower house, the Chamber of Deputies, and represents the Aysén Region. 

Author: Jonathan Garcés / fishfarmingexpert l Read the full article here

In 2024, aquaculture farms in Primorsky Krai made significant strides in fostering marine biodiversity and sustainable farming practices by releasing millions of young scallops and sea cucumbers into the region’s coastal waters.

As part of a pasture aquaculture initiative, fish farm operators have introduced 12.5 million juvenile aquatic species into the marine areas of Primorsky Krai since the beginning of the year. This includes 9.091 million young scallops and 3.48 million juvenile Far Eastern trepang (sea cucumbers), with the past month alone seeing the release of 440,000 scallops and over 1 million trepang.

These efforts, overseen by the Primorsky Territorial Administration of the Federal Agency for Fisheries, are part of a broader initiative to enhance the natural populations of these valuable species while supporting sustainable mariculture.

The cultivation areas for scallops and sea cucumbers include key bays in Primorsky Krai, such as Voevoda Bay (Russky Island), Severnaya Bay, Tabunnaya Bay, Boisman Bay, and the Amursky, Slavyansky, and Ussuriysky Bays. These locations provide ideal conditions for the growth and development of these species, contributing to both ecological balance and economic opportunities in the region.