Fish Update Briefing, Friday, January 19

FUp Briefing

A restaurant near Liverpool has hit back in style after a woman customer complained on Facebook about paying £8 for fish and chips. She said the meal ‘was lovely’ but asked the Oxton Bar and Kitchen to explain its prices. According to the Liverpool Echo, the restaurant was happy to oblige, pointing out that ‘our nasty government’ charges 20 per cent VAT which the business was obliged to collect on its behalf, and that left it with £6.66p. Out of that it had to buy the ingredients, including a haddock fillet, beer batter, mushy peas and potato chips, which left it with £3.94p – out of which the chef expected to be paid. Then there was the cost of gas and electricity and wages for the staff who served the meal. The Facebook reply concluded: ‘So if £3.94 is not justifiable for creating and affording this whole experience with us, you’re welcome to recreate it in the comfort of your own home. I doubt it’ll be long before the government find a tax for that too.’
EU FUNDING BOOST FOR FISHERIES
THE European Commission has announced that it has distributed 278 billion euros under the five European Structural and Investment Funds, including the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund, which UK seafood firms can benefit from until March next year. By October 2017, almost half of the European Structural and Investment Funds\’ budget for 2014 to 2020 had been committed to concrete projects. By the end of 2016, a study indicated that almost 793,500 businesses had received subsidies, creating a claimed 154,000 new jobs.
STRIKE AND STRONG KRONER HIT EARNINGS
HB Grandi’s, Iceland\’s second largest fishing company, earned around 11.8 billion kroners or £83.4 million from fish catching activities last year, a decline of 15 per cent on 2016. The reduction in value is thought to be almost entirely due to the fishermen\’s strike at the beginning of 2017, which went on for several weeks. However, total catch volumes rose from 142,000 tonnes to 152,500 tonnes due to higher pelagic catches. The strong exchange rate of the Icelandic kroner, which increased by an average of 10 per cent against major currencies, also had a marked effect on revenues.
GREEN LIGHT FOR ICELAND SALMON FARMERS
ICELAND\’S Food and Veterinary Authority has granted licences for two aquaculture companies, Arctic Sea Farm and Fjarðalaxur, to start farming in two areas known as Patreks and Tálknafjörður in the Westfjords region of the country. Together they hope to produce up to 17,500 tonnes of salmon a year, but the authority has put a 20,000 tonne ceiling on the companies. The Icelandic Environment Agency still has to add its approval before work can start.

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