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Norway and Iceland account for 42 per cent of European landings
Published: 08 December, 2010
NEW figures show that Norway and Iceland now account for 42 per cent of all European fish landings.
Their dominant position will almost certainly continue into the foreseeable future. The statistics refer to 2008, the last year for which figures are available. That year total fish landings by the European Union countries and in the EFTA bloc, of which Norway, is a member, amounted to 8.2 million metric tons. Norway topped the list with 2.2 million tons - or 26.8 per cent of that total. It is not know if the figures include farmed of which Norway is by far the largest player and the largest exporter.
Iceland comes a good second with 1.25 million tons of fish landings - or 15.2 per cent of the total. This will include large amounts of blue whiting and capelin which generally are sent to European markets. About 3,700 people are employed in fish processing in Iceland of which around 25 per cent are foreign workers.
As important as fishing is to Norway, the country also has a large offshore oil and gas sector as well as other manufacturing industries. But for Iceland, fishing is all important. Ironically, the country is now at odds with the EU and Norway over its self declared 130,000 ton mackerel quota and it shows no sign of relenting. Tomas H. Heider, Iceland's chief negotiator at the recent abortive talks in Oslo said his country now had no option but to set a unilateral quota for 2011. He said that other countries catching mackerel in the North Atlantic (and presumably he includes Scotland in this ) had to get accustomed to the fact that the mackerel stock is now much more prominent in Icelandic waters than was previously the case.
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