Tag Archives: Thor Sigfusson

The Great Lakes-Iceland connection through the 100% Whitefish effort

While Great Lakes fish populations are constantly in a state of flux, one species has declined precipitously in the last decade: lake whitefish. But Great Lakes leaders and fisheries managers are looking ahead in planning to do more with less. And in the case of whitefish, a lot more. The search for a way to preserve an industry with a shrinking natural resource brought the Iceland Ocean Cluster (IOC) into focus. IOC was founded by Thor Sigfusson in 2012 with a dozen companies on-site. There are now 70. So, what is it? And could it work as a model for the Great Lakes’ new whitefish initiative? >click to read< 17:09

Don Cuddy: There’s profit for New Bedford in processing all of the fish

On September 21, New Bedford officially joined the Icelandic Ocean Cluster, a business incubator in Reykjavik, focused on fostering innovation in ocean-related industries. The cluster, which focuses on marine biotechnology, aims to demonstrate that the seafood industry can extract more value from its fisheries as part of this network. The bottom line is getting people to look at organic waste as a product that has value and not simply as waste. Mayor Jon Mitchell signed the agreement with Thor Sigfusson, the main man from Iceland, at a ceremony held at the Whaling Museum. click here to read the story 08:27

Louisiana seafood industry told to think beyond daily catch

fsw001_amber_big1Leather made of tuna skin. Canned seafood marketed to tourists as souvenirs. Dried shrimp shells sold as a soup seasoning or used to extract chitin, a protein that has various agricultural, industrial and medical uses. Those were a few potential revenue generators for Louisiana’s seafood industry that were suggested Wednesday by Thor Sigfusson, an Icelandic entrepreneur who founded an incubator to connect businesses in the seafood industry. The effort, called the Iceland Ocean Cluster, focuses on developing innovative ideas within the fishing industry and new uses for the daily catch. “We have a scarcity of these natural proteins in the world, and these are absolutely the best proteins you can have,” Sigfusson told state leaders and seafood industry officials in New Orleans during a two-day visit. Read the story here 13:37