Danish fishermen have seen a very good sandeel season since the fishery opened on 1st April, with 150,000 tonnes of the overall 215,863 tonnes quota landed so far.
According to the Danish Fishermen’s Association, it is satisfying to see agreement in Parliament to lift the quota by an extra 10%.
‘We are delighted about the extra sandeel quota for the fishermen this year. We are pleased that politicians took the decision to take advantage of the opportunity offered by the EU system to be flexible with quotas from one year to another,’ said Jesper Juul Larsen of the Southwest Fishermen’s Association and chair of the Danish Fishermen’s Association’s industrial and pelagic fisheries committee.
‘It’s a big help for many fishermen in a year when export markets are almost completely closed down, which has resulted in falling prices for a number of consumer products,’ he said.
The quota flexibility is available only for vessels that have a share of the Danish quota – and this is where the Danish Fishermen’s Association would have liked to to see a slightly different distribution arrangement.
‘We would have liked something allocated for the group quota boats as well. There are many who have done well by participating in the group quota fishery for sandeel. The fact that they fished 15,000 tonnes in one month says something about how good a fishery it has been, and how much sandeel there is in Area 2,’ said Jesper Juul Larsen, who hopes that the extra sandeel will provide opportunity for fishermen to lease quota at a reasonable price.
‘We expect there are some vessels that have been given extra quota that will rent the fish out to others. The Danish Fishermen’s Association hopes that the extra quota will remain in Danish hands and not be exchanged with other fishermen.’
