Strong likelihood of significantly increased catch quotas next year
This encouraging fact appears from the report on the future of industrial fishing just agreed by the parties involved
999 NYT received this information from Mogens Schou, R&D Manager for Fishing and Aquaculture at the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries.
– In addition to the financial assistance initiatives for the industrial fishermen which have been agreed and are about to come into effect, we have now also achieved ITQs for the industrial fish species, enabling the fishermen to trade and combine their individual quotes, so that they can all develop the best and most profitable basis for their fishing, also in terms of planning future fishing, says Mogens Schou.
– However, the next question is how much fish will be available in future, he adds.
It is this question that receives a positive answer in the report.
Larger quotas and satisfactory profitability
In Mogens Schou’s opinion, the report has three main purposes:
1. to determine a better basis for future advice
The report shows that the Danish biologists after serious measurements and calculations have established that there is a significantly better basis for fishing – and therefore also a very strong likelihood of significantly increased catch quotas next year.
– This will therefore be the clear recommendation of the Danish biologists and the fishing industry seems to be reasonably happy with that result, says Mogens Schou. However, it still remains to be seen what ICES will recommend to the EU Commission.
2. to examine the financial consequences for the industrial fishermen
The other main purpose of the report is to examine whether Danish industrial fishing is financially viable in the future.
– Of course that is crucial to the various organisations which help finance industrial fishing, such as the private credit banks and the Fisheries Bank of Denmark, says Mogens Schou.
The report also provides a positive answer in this respect.
It shows that according to calculations made by the Danish Institute for Fisheries Economics, a conservative estimate suggests satisfactory profitability for industrial fishing in the future, provided the improved fishing opportunities envisaged in the report are achieved.
If the fishermen fully exploit the opportunities which the individually negotiable quotas offer, the profitability can moreover be further improved.
– These results suggest good business opportunities for industrial fishing. This will probably satisfy the financial partners of industrial fishing and encourage them to cut the fishermen a little more slack than in the rather difficult current situation, says Mogens Schou.
3. to prepare Danish industrial fishing for future requirements and development opportunities
– The industrial fleet is run in an increasingly professional way and is becoming more dependent on long-term financial planning. It is therefore natural that we investigate the possibilities of improving the documentation of the fishing and optimising the exploitation of the catch opportunities nationally, on a voluntary basis. There is no need to wait for either new EU requirements or market demands, before we investigate if things can be done better. That is why we now want to discuss, without prejudice or external pressure, how the renewal of Danish industrial fishing can support this objective, concludes Mogens Schou.
Applications can now be made for funds under the restructuring scheme
The “fan of initiatives” initiated by the politicians to promote the restructuring of industrial fishing includes a capacity adjustment award of EUR 30,000 or approx. DKK 225,000 for the individual company, corresponding to the maximum amount allowed for such a purpose by the EU.
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Mogens Schou, R&D Manager at the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, explains that the scheme has now received political agreement and the Directorate for Food, Fisheries and Agri Business has submitted an order about it to the Ministry, so that it will be possible to apply for funds under this scheme already from the beginning of October this year.
The report will have a positive effect on the credit banks
The report about the future of industrial fishing will clearly form the basis of profitable industrial fishing in the future
This is the view of Ole Lindberg Larsen, Head of Department in the Danish Fishing Association, who is also a member of the board of the Fisheries Bank of Denmark.
In Ole Lindberg Larsen’s opinion, the report’s conclusions with regard to the possibility of profitable industrial fishing in future will support the initiatives which the Danish Fishing Association have promoted, i.e.
· securing financial support for adjustment of the fishing
· encouraging the credit banks to postpone the payment of the loan instalments due in October
· influencing the Danish tax authorities (SKAT) to be lenient in connection with the VAT payments due this autumn.
– In this way we hope industrial fishing can weather the storm and achieve much better working conditions next year, says Ole Lindberg Larsen.
The long run
Adm. direktør Nils Chr. Jensen:
The result of the work initiated by the former Minister for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hans Christian Schmidt, around a long-term strategy for industrial fishing is now available in the form of a report.
The next step is to realise the intentions of the report – insofar as the Danish negotiators manage to convince first ICES, then STECF and finally the EU Commission.
The intentions aim at securing the widest possible scope for Danish industrial fishing in the EU administration and establishing a national administration which will secure the largest possible yield from the catch quotas made available by the EU.
What does this mean in practical terms for future fishing opportunities?
That is a good question, for when the precautionary principle governing virtually all EU decisions is taken into account, the answer will be very non-specific and beset with reservations.
The strategy for the administration may vary between different species and areas:
Sand eel
The sand eel population is assessed as healthy and may be fished within safe biological limits. This means that some of the restrictive requirements which have dominated sand eel fishing for the last few years can be eased.
Sand eel fishing will continue to be regulated on the basis of real time monitoring with an effort limitation, where the size of the population is calculated before the final quota is set. The model does not have the same high level of built-in precaution as in 2007, so an unnecessary fishing stop should not occur.
In the long term – i.e. from 2010 – the scientific advice is expected to be based on area-specific population assessments.
The basis for sand eel fishing for 2008 is assessed as very good, but it is harder to pin down a specific likely quota, as the 2007 intake will not be known until it is measured as part of the monitoring fishing in 2008.
A cautious estimate is that Denmark is 75 per cent likely to get a 2008 quota of 300,000 tons.
Sprat
The sprat administration in the North Sea and the Skagerrak/Kattegat will resemble the current situation, with an initial quota set in December and revised and adjusted during the year on the basis of real time monitoring.
The basis for sprat fishing in the above-mentioned areas is expected to be stable and sustainable with a catch of 100,000-200,000 tons in the North Sea and 20,000-40,000 tons in the Skagerrak/Kattegat.
In the Baltic Sea, sprat is thriving; the spawn population is stable and far above the biological minimum limit. This provides the basis for stable sprat fishing in the Baltic Sea at the same level as before, i.e. 40,000-50,000 tons.
Norway pout
The assessment is that Danish fishing of less than 25,000 tons of Norway pout a year will be sustainable for a number of years.
Blue whiting
The low 2005 and 2006 populations result in a pessimistic picture of the catch opportunities in the coming years.
Horse mackerel
Horse mackerel is expected to be sold as edible fish and therefore is not included in the industrial fishing basis.
What next?
The fishing opportunities for 2008 seem slightly better than in 2007, primarily due to the good sand eel population. Sprat fishing is expected to remain unchanged and the possible start of limited Norway pout fishing will compensate for the decline in blue whiting fishing.
The report also covers the vessels’ finances and the expected development of the fleet structure after the introduction of ITQs.
Here the development suggests a concentration of the fleet, which is then likely to fish profitably. The profitability is measured as gross profit in relation to insurance value based on the price relations applicable in 2006.
The future actual profitability will be influenced by how much the individual ship-owner has to invest in quota purchases and new build/adjustments, as well as the price development for industrial fish.
In the long term, the effect of the ITQs is expected to reduce the fleet to 35-40 vessels, accounting for more than 80 per cent of the income from industrial fishing.
When applying all reservations and precautionary principles, the conclusion is that there is probably a basis for Danish industrial fishing, but at a somewhat lower level than that which characterised the industry from 1970 to 2002.
The report does not consider the “land element” of industrial fishing, but clearly this also presents a challenge, where it is necessary to adapt to the future catch structure.
ESSI’s three new filleting machines are now operational
This means more fish through the system – and greater profits
During the summer, ESSI has invested around DKK 5m in rebuilding and extending factory as well as machine replacements.
This work is now coming to an end and the three new filleting machines are operational.
–The new filleting machines are able to operate faster and accept a smaller size of herring than the old ones, explains Managing Director Peter Luxhøi. – As a result, we achieve better exploitation of the fish we receive – formerly we had to discard up to 10 per cent – and we are now able to accept whole landings of small herrings which are much in demand in the industry at the moment, e.g. for processing as “fried herring”.
Lack of small herrings
– Currently, the market mainly offers relatively large North Sea herrings, says Peter Luxhøi. – There is therefore a shortage of fillets and especially patches of small herrings. Moreover, the factory is able to process small herrings with the new filleting machines.
Good, high level of activity
– This summer, our activity level has been high, with many landings, says Peter Luxhøi.
He explains that this summer up to August, ESSI has been above budget in terms of volume, while the activity in September is expected to be slightly lower.
From October through the winter, Peter Luxhøi expects to receive 3-4,000 tons of raw materials per month, which he describes as a satisfactory level of activity.
He is also satisfied with the company’s large order volume of acidified products, which sell for good prices.
What is the stockists’ opinion of TripleNine Bait?
To clarify this question, TripleNine Fish A/S will carry out a questionnaire survey among the stockists
The deep-frozen sand eel are produced and marketed as bait for anglers by TripleNine’s subsidiary, TripleNine Fish A/S. At the end of the second season on the Danish market, it wants to know the stockists’ opinion of the product.
– We want to sound out the stockists about our product at this point of time to clarify whether we can do more to increase awareness and sales of the frozen sand eel, says Director Ejgil Knudsen, TripleNine Fish A/S. –At the same time, we hope the dialogue with the stockists will also give us a better insight into the customer reactions.
TripleNine Bait is distributed via approx. 70 angling shops distributed over most of the country. The frozen bait is supplied in bags of 250 grams with 20-22 fish in each – ready for the angling trip.
Thyborøn and Esbjerg will receive alternate weekend landings, so far until 1 January
– We have decided that fish can be landed in Thyborøn at the weekends at the end of even weeks and in Esbjerg at the weekends in odd weeks, explains Production Manager Christian Bisgaard. – As usual, our weekend runs from Friday morning through Sunday.
However, Christian Bisgaard emphasises that this is a general rule. If fishing is really good, dispensations can be made from the rule.
–The alternate weekend landings in Thyborøn and Esbjerg have been introduced for the sake of the employees in production and the warehouse, so that they can be reasonably sure of having every other weekend off in future, says Christian Bisgaard.
As a result of the new risk order, Triple Nine in Esbjerg has to establish a new unloading bay capable of holding 30 cubic metres
– Our stocks of environmentally harmful substances such as diesel oil, lye, acid, etc. in Esbjerg are so large that we will be covered by the new risk order. This has lowered the limit from 5,000 to 2,500 cubic metres and we have more than 2,500 cubic metres, explains Environmental Manager Henrik Sørensen. – We therefore have to prepare a risk document describing how we plan to eliminate the risk of major accidents involving hazardous substances.
– One of the precautions we plan to introduce is the establishment of a new unloading bay for lorries delivering e.g. acid and lye to the factory, says the Environmental Manager.
Approval by all relevant authorities
The new unloading bay will be established behind Section III, where there are already unloading ramps for lorries.
If there is an accident, it is possible to collect 30 cubic metres here, which is the equivalent of a large tanker load.
– In order to ensure that all authorities can collaborate in such a situation, TripleNine’s safety document will be presented for approval to the police, the Emergency Management Agency, the Danish Working Environment Service, the Municipality of Esbjerg and the Danish Environmental Protection Agency, explains Henrik Sørensen.
The stock of environmentally harmful liquids at the factory in Thyborøn is below 2,500 cubic metres, so this is not covered by the risk order.
Alternate weekend landings
Thyborøn and Esbjerg will receive alternate weekend landings, so far until 1 January
– We have decided that fish can be landed in Thyborøn at the weekends at the end of even weeks and in Esbjerg at the weekends in odd weeks, explains Production Manager Christian Bisgaard. – As usual, our weekend runs from Friday morning through Sunday.
However, Christian Bisgaard emphasises that this is a general rule. If fishing is really good, dispensations can be made from the rule.
–The alternate weekend landings in Thyborøn and Esbjerg have been introduced for the sake of the employees in production and the warehouse, so that they can be reasonably sure of having every other weekend off in future, says Christian Bisgaard.
New unloading bay for environmentally harmful substances
As a result of the new risk order, Triple Nine in Esbjerg has to establish a new unloading bay capable of holding 30 cubic metres
– Our stocks of environmentally harmful substances such as diesel oil, lye, acid, etc. in Esbjerg are so large that we will be covered by the new risk order. This has lowered the limit from 5,000 to 2,500 cubic metres and we have more than 2,500 cubic metres, explains Environmental Manager Henrik Sørensen. – We therefore have to prepare a risk document describing how we plan to eliminate the risk of major accidents involving hazardous substances.
– One of the precautions we plan to introduce is the establishment of a new unloading bay for lorries delivering e.g. acid and lye to the factory, says the Environmental Manager.
Approval by all relevant authorities
The new unloading bay will be established behind Section III, where there are already unloading ramps for lorries.
If there is an accident, it is possible to collect 30 cubic metres here, which is the equivalent of a large tanker load.
– In order to ensure that all authorities can collaborate in such a situation, TripleNine’s safety document will be presented for approval to the police, the Emergency Management Agency, the Danish Working Environment Service, the Municipality of Esbjerg and the Danish Environmental Protection Agency, explains Henrik Sørensen.
The stock of environmentally harmful liquids at the factory in Thyborøn is below 2,500 cubic metres, so this is not covered by the risk order.
NOW the shared internet-based pool system is almost ready
The computer system which will “communicate” directly with the Directorate for Food, Fisheries and Agri Business should have been operational already at the beginning of the year, but it has suffered from technical problems
– However, it should at long last be ready to go live, says Erik Bonde Pedersen, Chairman of the Board at TripleNine. – We are now in the process of adding all our pool participants to the system and hope it will be up and running around 1 October this year.
So far, TripleNine has administered the pools in an ordinary spreadsheet and the administrator has had to check the figures with the Ministry. In the new system, however, the Ministry’s catch quotas can be entered directly, so that the individual pool participants by using a password can see what has been registered for the pool, how much fish they have left themselves and how much the other participants have left.
Information meetings in North and South
On the basis of this information, the individual pool participants can then decide whether they want to auction off an amount of fish which they do not need themselves, e.g. 500 tons. The others can then bid for this amount of fish through an auction system.
– It works almost like a home banking system, which also manages many people’s accounts, but allows the individuals to access the system to check their own accounts only, says Erik Bonde Pedersen.
He explains that information meetings about the electronic pool administration are planned in both North and South.
TripleNine at DanFish
Once again, TripleNine will take part in the DanFish International fishing exhibition in Aalborg on 17-19 October
– As usual, we will be represented at Thyborøn’s shared stand, which this year is D 800, and we hope to make good new contacts among fishermen and shipping companies, especially in Norway and Sweden, explains Helge Lyng Pedersen, TripleNine in Thyborøn. – And of course we also want an opportunity to show the flag and say hello to all our established good contacts on the markets.
– We therefore hope that both our Danish and foreign partners will pay us a visit, concludes Helge Lyng Pedersen.
Take a fishing student sailing!
This appeal is issued by the Chairman of Esbjerg Fishing Association, Jesper Juul Larsen
– It does not help the future of the fishing industry that fishing is receiving support from many sides, if we cannot ourselves ensure an intake of young people for the industry, says Jesper Juul Larsen. – It is therefore essential that the fishermen are prepared to take the apprentices sailing, even though they cannot be expected to be experienced fishermen from day one.
More fishing training – at an earlier stage of the education
– We have now established a good education for the young people and we therefore also have to receive them during their work placement periods, says Jesper Juul Larsen. – However, it might improve the fishermen’s willingness to accept apprentices on board if the students received rather more fishing training at an earlier stage of their education, so that they were better prepared for the life on board and the work that needs to be done.
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– Nonetheless, the long and the short of it is that we have to respond positively to the fishing apprentices when they apply for work placements, concludes the Chairman of the Esbjerg Fishing Association.
New kind of workplace assessments
The future workplace assessments in Esbjerg will be carried out in groups rather than on paper
– The familiar forms for workplace assessments can often be difficult to process because the employees do not always manage to formulate and write down all relevant issues on a piece of paper, explains Environmental Manager Henrik Sørensen. – This year, we have therefore decided to implement the workplace assessments as group discussions, where the employees can quietly sit together and talk about the issues that are relevant to their area of work.
The new-style workplace assessments are implemented with the help of impartial consultants
Twelve groups will be set up based on the participants’ work function. After the group sessions, the results will be presented at a plenary meeting and combined into a workplace assessment for the relevant area.
Henrik Sørensen emphasises that the group sessions and subsequent plenary meeting will be led by external consultants, so that the employees’ own managers do not necessarily participate in the process.
Visit by quality-conscious customer
Recently, one of TripleNine’s customers visited the factory in Esbjerg to check the entire production process
– The visit was made by extremely well-qualified representatives of one of our Dutch customers, who gave us four days’ notice, explains Quality Manager Hans Otto Sørensen. – They were particularly interested in whether the raw materials came from sustainable fishing and in the quality of the raw materials, both in relation to fish from the vessels and to off-cuts from the herring processing at ESSI.
– However, they were offered free access to review the entire production – and they did, adds Hans Otto Sørensen. – The customer representatives expect us to explain everything from the catch through the treatment of the fish to the actual production, and the three focus areas are quality, traceability and sustainable fishing.
We have to be prepared for this kind of customer inspection at all times, says Hans Otto Sørensen. – The Dutch are well ahead in this area, but the other markets will soon follow suit.Managing Director Nils Christian Jensen:
