Predictions that mackerel would not this year migrate into Icelandic waters haven’t come true, according to Barði’s skipper Runólfur Runólfsson, who has just landed 1320 tonnes of mackerel –caught in home waters – to the Síldarvinnslan plant in Neskaupstaður.
He commented that the season has been going well, and ‘better than anyone had expected.’
‘It’s great news that there’s fishing inside out EEZ and this strengthens our position in relation to other nations that also fish this stock. The fish are large, fat and good quality, but they don’t show up well on the instruments. Mackerel keep to themselves in small marks and are quick to move, so these marks can vanish in the blink of an eye,’ he said, adding that they have to work for their fish.
‘But we can’t complain and now we’re landing 1300 tonnes of clean mackerel. This was caught by three vessels over 24 hours.’
With around 12,400 tonnes landed so far, approximately a third of the mackerel quota available to the Síldarvinnslan and Samherji vessels has so far been caught, and being able to fish in home waters with a relatively short steam to land catches means that quality is better than when fishing is further offshore in international waters.
Production is a mix of wholefrozen, H&G and fillets, and processing is going well, according to production manager Geir Sigurpáll Hlöðversson.
‘There’s a good pace to production and there’s nothing to complain about. The fish we’re working now, landed by Beitir, is exceptionally good quality,’ he said.
Photo: Helgi Freyr Ólason
