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WITH new fishing season already a week old, Iceland still has almost 20 per cent of its allowable uptake for haddock still uncaught. The haddock quota for the current fishing year is 51,000 metric tons, of which 41,000 tons had been taken up to the end of August.
Of the balance of 10,000 tons to be taken , about half has already been converted into other species. Around 4,000 tons can be transferred to the new fishing year which started on September 1st. Any speculation to the effect that part of the haddock quota might be forfeited would therefore seem to have little or no basis, says the country's fishing press. It should also help to allay fears of an immediate haddock shortage this autumn because of the reduced quota for the new fishing year.
However, there are worries particularly among Scottish fishermen that Iceland's decision to increase the cod quota by 10,000 tones to a total of 160,000 tons could push down prices at UK markets.
The Scottish White Fish Producers Association thinks Iceland will export more cod to Britain and this will impact negatively on prices which means less income for UK fishermen, and Scottish fishermen in particular who are among the main cod catchers.
On an even more contentious note, Iceland has now caught and processed more three quarters (about 90,000 tones) of its unilateral 130,000 ton mackerel quota. The total export value of mackerel to Iceland is expected to be about 98 million euros (£82 million), but the Icelanders say most of the fish is for human consumption rather than fish meal production.
Should fisheries be closed during breeding time to allow stocks to reach more sustainable levels?
