Marine and Freshwater Research Institute has issued its advice for the coming quota year, set to start on the 1st September this year. Although the final decision lies with the Minister of Fisheries, in practice Ministers in recent years have rarely departed appreciably from the Institute’s advice.
The Institute has advised a cod TAC of 211,309 tonnes, representing an increase of just 3000 tonnes, or 1%, over the current year’s quota for cod.
Speaking at a press conference, research scientist Bjarki Thór Elvarsson stated that the expectation is for the cod stock to continue to grow, with no ‘major changes expected.’
The advice is for substantial changes to the quotass for haddock, with a 23% quota increase to 76,415 tonnes, and a 62% increase in the quota for golden redfish is advised to 41,286 tonnes. This comes as a relief, as avoiding golden redfish has been a challenge throughout the current quota year. But this increase could be something other than a long-term trend, the Institute warns, as year classes from 2009 on are judged to be poor, leading to likely reductions in future quota advice.
There are reductions advised for saithe (7%) and Greenland halibut (19%), while the Institute has advised a zero TAC for deep redfish.
‘We do not expect this stock to increase to beyond precautionary levels in the foreseeable future, even if we become aware of strong recruitment as this takes many years to filter into the stock,’ Bjarki Thór Elvarsson said.
The Institute’s recommendation for Icelandic summer-spawning herring is for a 40% quota increase next year to 92,634 tonnes, as the stock is judged to have expanded rapidly following strong recruitment in 2017 and 2019.
