Following a bad-tempered falling-out at the end of last year over reciprocal access to fishing grounds, Iceland and the Faroe Islands have come to an agreement for access in 2018 to Atlanto-Scandian herring, blue whiting and other fish stocks.
Iceland’s blue whiting fishery in the north-eastern Atlantic has been granted MSC certification and the blue tick of approval that goes with it. The fishery has been certified by conformity assessment body DNV GL against the MSC’s fisheries standard.
Iceland’s minister of fisheries and agriculture Kristján Thór Júlíusson has taken the decision to exclude Faroese fishing vessels from Icelandic waters in 2018, just as the Faroe Islands warned Iceland its vessels would not have access to blue whiting in the Faroese zone unless concessions were made.
The crews of HB Grandi’s pelagic vessels are now ashore for the Christmas break after a couple of weeks of good fishing on blue whiting. According to Víkingur’s skipper Albert Sveinsson, the plan is to be back at sea on the third of January, but as yet it is not certain whether they will be fishing for capelin or blue whiting.
There’s plenty to keep the staff of HB Grandi’s fishmeal plant in Vopnafjörður busy for the next few days with 4000 tonnes of blue whiting landings yesterday and last night.
The springtime blue whiting fishery that takes place west of the British Isles is notorious for the strains it places on fishing gear.
The Faroese Ministry of Fisheries is preparing a series of quota auctions that start this week, with herring, blue whiting and mackerel quotas offered for sale to the highest bidder, as well as groundfish quotas in both Russian and Norwegian zones of the Barents Sea.
One of Síldarvinnslan’s pelagic vessels yesterday docked in Neskaupstaður with 2200 tonnes of blue whiting on board, most of it caught in Icelandic waters.
There have been some big landings and steady fishing as the blue whiting migrate northwards through Faroese waters.
Iceland’s blue whiting season has taken off after a slow start. The fishing is mainly in Faroese waters and although fishing was slow to begin with, but have increased steadily as the blue whiting migrate into the Faroese EEZ.