Tag Archives: Seafish
Fishing fuel prices leading to labour concerns and supply issues
Fuel prices for fishing vessels have risen beyond what was predicted as the worst-case scenario in April, leading to some vessels being tied up and crews walking away, seafood sector insiders have warned. Seafish, the industry body for seafood, said that fuel prices which it had expected to peak at the level of 90p per litre (all tax excluded) for the sector were now close to £1 on average at ports. High fish prices on the first sale market were helping some fishers to mitigate the impacts of fuel price increases, but some crews were more vulnerable than others to changes, said the public body. These concerns were echoed by the National Federation of Fishermen’s Organisations’ chairman, Paul Gilson, who said in a statement that “the price has, for several weeks, been hovering around the point where it becomes no longer viable to go to sea because earnings no longer cover costs of which fuel is the most significant component”. >click to read< 13:49
Training for new recruits needs to be extended says Seafish.
Simon Potten, Head of Safety and Training, discusses how local engagement and more training could be the key to making the fishing industry safer. During Maritime Safety Week (4-8 July) which was a great platform for raising national awareness of safety in the commercial fishing industry. We have been supporting Maritime Safety Week since it was started by the Department for Transport in 2018. In those five years there have been 23 deaths on commercial fishing vessels in the UK. Unfortunately, most of them came in 2021 when we tragically lost 10 fishermen. The worst year in over a decade for lives lost. Which is why I think Maritime Safety Week is more important this year than ever before. So, what can we do to make the fishing industry safer? >click to continue< 12:13
Fishermen say survival training could prove vital
Five fishermen have undertaken man overboard training to help reduce incidents at sea. The free in-water courses held in Aberdeen, demonstrate how to avoid overboard incidents, and what can be done to recover and improve the chances of survival. The environment pool training facility at energy sector training provider Survivex, which simulates some of the conditions experienced at sea, including heavy swells and rain. The session was funded by the Fishing Industry Safety Group, a partnership between the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, RNLI, fishermen’s associations from across the UK and public body Seafish. >click to read< 18:30
UK-wide funding scheme supports purchase of life-saving safety equipment for fishermen
The new UK-wide funding scheme, which is being delivered by Seafish in co-operation with the MCA and Trinity House, is open to owners of active UK registered commercial fishing vessels who have not previously received support to purchase PLBs from elsewhere. It allows them to claim a reimbursement of £200 on the cost of each item purchased for their crew,, >click to read< For further details and information on how to apply, >click here< 11:22
Plymouth fishermen to get GPS lifejackets to prevent tragedies at sea
Plymouth City Council has ordered 250 lifejackets with built-in locators, which give off distress signals to help identify the exact location of crews in the event of an emergency. The tragic death of popular fisherman Tony Jones, whose body was discovered after The Solstice capsized about nine miles from Plymouth last month, provided a stark reminder of the dangers of the job. After applying for funding last September, the council has been awarded £77,000 from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund and the Maritime Management Organisation for the scheme, which it is hoped will help reduce loss of life and accidents within the local fishing industry. click here to read the story 16:12
UK fishermen see Brexit bonanza, but there’s a catch
Newlyn – For the fishermen of this small port on the toe of England, Britain’s vote to leave the European Union was an answer to their prayers. After 45 years chafing under what they saw as unfair quotas in one of the world’s richest fishing grounds, the UK government would finally, in the lexicon of Brexiteers, “take back control” of British waters. But what Brexit gives with one hand, it can also take away. European fishermen want Brussels to use its trump card – continued access to the essential EU market – in negotiations on how to divvy up the seas. click here to read the story 12:15
North Sea cod gets MSC certification
At times during these moratorium years of the northern cod, people in this province have glanced at the North Sea to see how that cod stock was faring. Collapsed, recovered and collapsed again, North Sea cod over the years seemed on a different path than northern cod, and different methods were undertaken to attempt recovery and sustainability. On Wednesday, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) announced that North Sea cod has received its distinguished certification after the stock passed an independent assessment against the MSC’s strict standards.,,, “Since then the industry has worked with the Scottish Government and EU Fisheries Council to agree and implement a ‘Cod Recovery Plan’ that would nurse the stock back to health. “The plan linked the number of days fishing that boats were given to the conservation measures they signed up to. click here to read the story 17:42
Sea You Home Safe! Seafish is calling on the UK’s fishermen to think about their safety
Seafish is calling on the UK’s fishermen to think about their safety after research revealed 46% of commercial fishermen consider their job to be dangerous but 34% say they rarely or never wear a Personal Flotation Device (PFD). Seafish’s safety at sea campaign, Sea You Home Safe, is continuing to call for the 12,000 fishermen across the UK to think about their safety before setting sail, with 7,000 new lightweight PFDs given to UK fishermen over the past year. Read the rest here 16:42
Fishing Methods Guide, produced by Seafish
“Years and years of research and development has gone in to gear technology over the years, allowing fishermen to be more selective with the catch. Yet, most people never get the opportunity to see fishing gear in operation – they have very little appreciation of how it works and what it actually looks like when it is fishing. Fishermen will know and understand their own gear very well, but even they rarely see what happens with the gear beneath the water, usually having to rely on the resulting catch to gauge how the gear is working.” See the download here 08:18
Seafarers UK: Maritime industry to supply free safety devices
SEAFISH has welcomed the news that the UK maritime industry bodies’ have pledged more than £150,000 in additional funding to provide more commercial fishermen with free Read more here 08:00
