FIFTY Northern Ireland food companies have tabled 250 new products in a bid to strike gold in the prestigious Great Taste Awards, the UK’s leading event for smaller food businesses.

ARGYLL-BASED Loch Fyne Oysters is celebrating after winning an award at the 2008 Scotland Food & Drink Excellence Awards, held in Edinburgh last night.

WHITBY'S fish and chip shops have helped the town land an English 'Tourism Oscar'.

STUEHRK Delikatessen Import and Royal Greenland were awarded the top prizes in the eighth annual Seafood Prix d’Elite new products competition at the European Seafood Exposition, the world’s largest and most prestigious seafood event, last night.

ANDY Lane, one of the founders of Loch Fyne Oysters, has received the Judges’ Special Award in the 2008 edition of The List’s Eating and Drinking Guide, published today.

THE French company Groupement des Mousquetaires has obtained responsible fishing certification for a group of species.

THE Danish blue-shell mussel fishery of Limfjord is to be assessed against the MSC (Marine Stewardship Council) standard for sustainable fishing. If successful, it will, it was claimed today, be the first source of MSC-labelled mussels to reach the global seafood market.

ONE more tuna fishery and several branded tuna products have obtained Friend of the Sea accreditation.

SCOTTISH oysters will be on show at a London food festival this month.

THE export value of Norwegian seafood dropped by NOK 521 million, to NOK 9.3 billion in the first quarter, compared with the same period last year.

A LEADING Orkney seafood business has achieved an important exports breakthrough, after securing a deal to supply specially prepared produce for the Kosher market in the United States.

INTERNATIONAL seafood ecolabel and sustainability standard, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), has opened an office in Edinburgh.

MARINE Harvest has confirmed that a situation which saw some batches of salmon affected by an unpleasant odour is now under control.The company say that all salmon from harvesting day February 13 meets the necessary quality standards.

THE Food Standards Agency tonight issued a third update on an incident involving Scottish salmon (excluding organic salmon) due to a potential risk of taint.

THE Food Standards Agency has issued a second updated Food Alert for Information on the withdrawal by a number of retailers of fresh Scottish salmon (but not organic salmon), because of a risk of a taint, resulting in an unpleasant taste. Further products have been withdrawn by Tesco and Costco.

MORRISONS has recalled its fresh Scottish salmon (but not organic salmon) sold from fresh fish counters and pre-packed chiller cabinets because of a possible risk of a white spirit taint, resulting in an unpleasant taste, the Food Standards Agency announced today.

SCOTLAND'S famous Anstruther Fish Bar has today scooped the Staff Training and Development Award at this year’s national Fish and Chip Shop of the Year competition.