Iceland: Survey looks at public views on corruption in the

Alexei Sergeev

Fishing Industry

Nevertheless, the majority also feels that fixing the problem should be near the bottom of the list of current government priorities.

Most Icelanders think the fishing industry is corrupt but not so corrupt that the authorities should do much about it, according to a recent survey by the Social Science Research Institute of the University of Iceland for the

Ministry of Food, examining the country’s fishery management system. The survey of 1,133 citizens determined that most Icelanders think the fishing industry created value for too few. More than half (56) of the survey’s respondents

“strongly” or “rather strongly” disapprove of the current state of affairs in Iceland’s second most important export industry (after raw aluminum), while around a quarter (22.5) reported “strong” or “rather strong” satisfaction.

Denmark: New guide to regenerative aquaculture aims to encourage sustainable farming

The recently published Handbook for Sea Harvesters seeks to change how aquaculturists view their operations, whether they are an established a commercial business, an emerging small farm, a fisher who also farms as a sideline, or a household growing its own food supply. The handbook, prepared by the independent institution Havhøst, shows how sustainable income streams can be created by farming sustainable aquatic resources, such as the many species of algae and shellfish that already are a growing sector all across Europe and beyond. Regenerative aquaculture supports a holistic approach to the symbiosis that is possible between ecosystems, human lifestyles, and business models.

The founder of Havhøst, Joachim Hjerl, explains that with the Handbook for Sea Harvesters, they try to pass on their positive experiences with regenerative sea farming to coastal fishermen and other local, commercial players. A huge untapped potential in terms of climate and commercial gains existed because for many years people did not have an eye on the necessary interaction between healthy ecosystems and healthy business models. Together with the Danish Small-Scale LowImpact Fishers' Association and Producer Organisation, Havhøst has combined the experience of maritime farms with that from coastal fishing to create a series of concrete recommendations on how you, as a commercial actor, can get started with regenerative aquaculture.

Hurdles to small-scale farming exist, such as getting legal permits, but many localities are easing the way when they see how farms can have positive rather than negative environmental impacts. Also, financial assistance is increasingly available from the EU as well as local or national sources. These and other practical issues (for example, what species can I grow and how?) are all addressed in the handbook, which is available at www.havhøst.dk (in Danish only).

Those with “little knowledge” of the industry and those with “much knowledge” had about the same shares of negative or positive views, according to the results. The survey was stratified by age, gender, and residence, in addition to knowledge of the industry. The majority (58) of the population of all regions and age groups agree on the importance of fishing, but in Reykjavík, one-third said they disagreed. As for what government should do about it, respondents were asked to rank six systems – health, fisheries, transportation, welfare, education, and agriculture – according to where the most needed reforms are considered. The decisive majority (67) answered: healthcare. Only 10 put the fishing industry first.

The book is relevant not only for Denmark as the commercial approach to regenerative aquaculture is highly important for other EU countries, where regenerative sea farming is spreading.

Albania: Italian aid to Albania’s artisanal fishing seeks to modernise infrastructure

Albania is borrowing EUR25 million from the Italian government to improve infrastructure for artisanal fishermen and to build a fish market, the Albanian Deputy Minister of Agriculture for Fisheries said recently. The investment is undertaken mainly in the ancient city of Durrës, on Albania’s central Adriatic coast. The project includes an increase in mooring capacity and landing sites, as well as a fish market in Durrës. The market is to be operated, with fishermen responsible as a group for employment, costs and receipts, and sales tax collection and payments.

The fisheries sector of Albania has not escaped the trends seen throughout the Mediterranean area of overfishing and aging equipment, vessels, and people. The average age of the fleet is 43 years, compared to the EU average of 30 years, and young people (as everywhere) do not find the industry’s jobs attractive. External forces, including the high price of fuel, are hurting artisanal fishermen too. By better organisation of the industry, including improved infrastructure, the Albanian government hopes to improve its efficiency and economic viability.

After Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, fuel prices rocketed causing a drastic decrease in fishing activity and production in Albania. In February-April last year the number of fishing days fell by 1,300 compared to the same period in 2021, and the same situation was observed in May-June 2022, bringing sea fishing almost to a halt.

Spain: Breakthrough in bluefin tuna aquaculture

Bluefin tuna aquaculture is difficult. For one thing, bluefin have a hard time producing eggs in captivity due to stress. Therefore, until recently, this species has more successfully been ranched rather than farmed, by holding wild-caught fish in cages to fatten them up before harvest. Moreover, the idea of farming them in landbased facilities seemed far-fetched at best. But things have suddenly changed. In the first-time-ever category of achievements, researchers from the Spanish Institute of Oceanography in the Region of Murcia have managed to reproduce the bluefin tuna (Thunnus thynnus) in an onshore facility.

The institute has a facility, based in Cartagena, which the Ministry of Science and Innovation has declared a Singular Scientific and Technical Infrastructure for Bluefin Tuna Farming, that is used for controlled bluefin reproduction. It contains two big tanks (20 and 22 meters in diameter and 10 meters

Although in the past bluefin tuna was considered a low-class fish, as it spoils easily and smells, nowadays it is the most sought fish species in the world. Overfishing and illegal fishing caused a severe decline in the bluefin population, however, in the past few years a slight increase of the stocks has been observed. Will aquaculture be a solution? deep), and two smaller ones (14 and 8 meters diameter) with combined seawater capacity of 7 million liters. Two groups of bluefin tuna populate the tanks, one containing 25 fish born in 2017 and the other eight fish born in 2018.

In July of this year scientists injected hormones into the second group of tuna to induce final maturation and egg laying, thereby overcoming the stress-caused difficulty noted earlier. Three days later the tuna produced 3 million eggs. While the Institute had done this with tuna in sea-based floating cages, this had never been done in a land-based facility. The next step is to see how the newborns survive and, in the future, perhaps reproduce themselves.