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GRIMSBY'S new £3million seafood village project is on course for a New Year opening.
Twenty-two modern processing units have been built to replace many of the Victorian fish houses which should have been pulled down years ago. Each unit has 2,000 square of processing space and 1,300 square feet of office space above. At least 16 of the units have already been let and the new tenants include a Carisma, a leading Norwegian seafood company and a fish trading business from Billingsgate in London.
It had been hoped to have the "village" ready for the end of this year, but heavy autumn rain made cement mixing almost impossible which delayed construction.
When fully occupied it will be processing fish worth at least £20-million a year. “We have had inquiries from Europe and Scandinavia,” said joint managing director Peter Dalton, who runs the company Ocean Bounty.
The other managing director, Gary Cadey, who heads Garfish, his own fish exporting business, added: “The local council has also been very good, marketing the “village” at the Brussels Seafood Show and when it went to Iceland in September. It will be the biggest seafood village in the country when completed, and there are a further 27 acres of spare land should they want to build a second stage.
"It will be the biggest seafood village in the country when completed, and there are a further 27 acres of spare land should they want to build a second stage." The two men admit there were times when they thought the project would not happen.
“We had to climb over a lot of fences, mainly concerned with funding, to get where we are,” said Peter.
Ideally, they would have liked a freehold site from Associated British Ports, but they have managed to secure a 125-year lease, which they believe is almost as good as freehold.
They believe the Seafood Village project, along with the modernisation of the fish market, will signal the rebirth of Grimsby as a modern fish handling hub. Gary said: “Grimsby is already the most important fish centre in the country, if not Europe. Around 80 per cent of the fish handled in Britain either comes through Grimsby, or is sourced in Grimsby. It is also the largest salmon handling and processing centre in the UK, thanks to a deal three years ago with the producer Marine Harvest."
Peter added: “Anyone who is serious about being in the fish business should be in Grimsby and nowhere else. If Gary and myself didn’t believe in Grimsby we would not be doing this.”
The Iceland supply link is already well established and well known, but more Norwegian white fish is coming into the port and more of it onto the fish market auction.
Including vehicle drivers, they reckon the Seafood Village will provide direct new employment to over 200 people. It will also protect the jobs of another 500 people.
But they believe that they already providing a very cost effective modern fish processing centre, with rents averaging just £6 a square foot. Peter said: "It is a great opportunity for firms in Hull or Scotland or Europe who are thinking of setting up in the town. Further details about the village can be obtained by phoning 01472 277877 or 07801 028832."
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