Visit us online for news, features and media nostalgia KELSEY KELSEY 24 September 2020 Issue 5533 £3.30 media KELSEY KELSEY fishingnews.co.uk TURN TO PAGE 2 FOR THE FULL PRAWN SECTOR NEEDS HELP REPORT New-look Beryl fishes her first trip Skippers Colin and Jon Mitchell sailed from Fraserburgh at the end of last week to fish their first trip with the new-look whitefish stern trawler Beryl BF 440, reports David Linkie. After leaving Peterhead at the end of the previous week, where the 29m Beryl was given a distinctive new black and white look by Davidsons Marine and Industrial Painters, she berthed at Fraserburgh in preparation for pulling on new fishing gear, swinging the compass and running fishing trials in the Hole- of-the-Broch last Thursday, before … after being hydro-blasted and fully leaving for her maiden trip under the repainted by Davidsons. (Photos: Ryan Cordiner) new owners. Named after a precious stone, Beryl is dating back to Colin and Jon Mitchell’s the seventh boat of the same name to be great-grandfather. Beryl leaving Peterhead last week to rig out at Fraserburgh… owned by the Mitchell family of Whitehills, Continues on page 4 Christina S landing herring at Lerwick last week. North Sea herring season draws to a close (Photo: Sydney Sinclair) The few boats still fishing North Sea herring took their final shots last week, reportsDavid Linkie. A succession of landings in recent weeks by boats from Shetland, North East Scotland and Northern Ireland to the Pelagia Shetland processing factory at Lerwick concluded with the Fraserburgh midwater trawler Christina S pumping herring ashore. Fishing this month was generally focused between Fair Isle and Orkney, where prime-quality MSC-accredited herring were taken in short trips. Pelagic crews are now preparing for the start of the North Sea mackerel fishery, with the first boats expected to leave harbour in the next few weeks. EXTREME CONDITIONS Heavy Duty and COMFORTABLE www.guycotten.com AVAILABLE AT YOUR GUY COTTEN DEALER BIB AND BRACES UNO WITH APRON X-TRAPPER ISOMAX CHINOOK Manufacturer in France since 1964 2 NEWS Visit us at fishingnews.co.uk and on Twitter @YourFishingNews 24 September 2020 Scots leaders press for help for prawn sector ‘Little prospect of early market recovery’ Scottish industry leaders are usual price. diminished. It would be fair to exploring with the Scottish All the main Scottish freezer assume that back-up reserves government ways to help the processors, including the SFO, would have dwindled by now, struggling Nephrops sector, halted production, as did most so I doubt this fleet would be reports Tim Oliver. fresh operators. Some smaller particularly resilient to further Demand plummeted due to operations continued trading, significant shocks.” Covid-19, and although it has but prices were low and barely In view of this ‘worrying recovered a little, the sector is viable for most SFO members. prospect’, he and industry still struggling, in North East The outcome was that the colleagues have been in dialogue England and Northern Ireland as value of Nephrops landings by with Scottish cabinet secretary well as in Scotland. the SFO fleet this year was down Fergus Ewing, Marine Scotland Giving evidence to the House over 50%, representing a 30% and Scotland Food and Drink of Commons Scottish Affairs price decrease on average across officials about setting up a Committee, which is examining the board. ‘Nephrops sector-specific the impact of coronavirus on “That is grim by any stretch of resilience initiative’. the Scottish industry, industry the imagination,” the SFO chief This would aim to identify leaders said that the worst hit actions to enable a sustained told the committee. “The reality “I know it’s to help the industry, but there’s a limit to the had been the shellfish sector, is that coronavirus has majorly economic recovery throughout and Nephrops in particular. impacted on the Nephrops value the Nephrops supply chain and number of bloody prawn cocktails that my insides will cope John Anderson, chief executive chain, and it looks like it will ‘ultimately try to drive this with in a week.” of the Scottish Fishermen’s take quite some time to fully sector forward post-Covid and Organisation (SFO), the UK’s recover.” into a post-Brexit environment impact and a difference. We are the coronavirus pandemic had biggest PO, said that the He said that any further as well’. concerned about the viability of hit the sector very quickly, and Nephrops sector supply chain market failures resulting from He hoped that a formal parts of not just the Nephrops some parts of it very hard. had come together ‘to try to second waves of Covid-19, initiative would be established fleet but the onshore processing “It was apparent pretty quickly brainstorm what we need to do lockdowns and so on would have in the near future. “There will sector.” that the shellfish part of the to get us moving in the right a serious impact on the viability be supply side and demand- He added that, depending fleet was the most immediately direction again’. of the industry. driven initiatives; no doubt, on future developments, ‘we hit – initially, the very smallest He said that demand had “Nephrops vessels were tied up new marketing and promotional may well have to seek some part of that fleet, and then the ‘practically fallen of a cliff’ from with no income for a significant strategies, quality initiatives, additional emergency hardship slightly larger vessels,” she told mid-March to early May. Most of time period earlier this year,” he product differentiations and so funding – it is very difficult to the committee. the prawn fleet had been tied up, told the committee. “Although on,” he told the committee. say at this stage’. The whitefish fleet had and those who still had a market they are now mostly back at “The question is to what Elspeth Macdonald, chief continued to operate, but ‘in a were being paid a fraction of the sea, profitability has greatly extent that will really make an executive of the SFF, said that very significantly altered way and serving a very volatile marketplace’, while the seasonal pelagic sector ‘escaped Remote communities under threat unscathed, compared with the others’. “The shellfish part of the Asked about support for the handed down over generations long term and the bigger picture. prospects, which will go on for catching sector was certainly the shellfish sector, the Scottish would be lost for good, even when With that, I am confident that generations to come.” most significantly affected,” she industry leaders said that the the industry recovers. communities and business can Elspeth Macdonald said that in said. Scottish and Westminster It was very difficult to grow,” he told the committee. This terms of support, it was important Jimmy Buchan, chairman governments had acted quickly, stimulate enough demand for would create a thriving industry, that any future arrangements of the Scottish Seafood and that they generally welcomed shellfish in local economies to and money coming back to the should ‘allow us to make those Association, said that the the financial help that had been save businesses, despite efforts to government through taxes, he said. quick, agile and necessary shellfish sector was ‘probably given. do so, he said. “Until we can get “We have to get the investment to responses to whatever situations still only at 50% of capacity for “Without that help, I am international trade moving at pace get the return.” we find ourselves in’. where it should be at this time of pretty sure that a number of these and in volume, we will be in a He said there were ‘huge That was one of the reasons year’, and remained a concern. businesses would not be here very difficult position.” challenges’, but they were critical the SFF had been keen not to “It is a high-value export right now,” Jimmy Buchan told Jimmy Buchan said that one to the future. Without investment, see a lot of prescriptive rules market,” he told the committee. the committee. of the main things needed was fish may be landed abroad, ‘and in the fisheries bill that would “Until we see some sort of But he said that a number a replacement for the European the economic benefit will be lost prevent governments and local normality return to how people of shellfish businesses were Maritime and Fisheries Fund to the communities’. communities from moving go on holiday or travel on still struggling. “I have asked, (EMFF), and that the industry He said: “This is a huge quickly, she said. business, we will find a reduced and I continue to ask, that the was engaging with the Scottish opportunity, and it is time that we “The way that the four parts market for that product.” governments look at this situation and UK governments on this. all got together to start working of the UK were able to respond He said there was a ‘new on a case-by-case basis.” “That will be crucial to growing collectively, instead of trying to differently to their local needs normal’, with social distancing He said that some shellfish this industry going forward.” stop and resist where this industry was evidence of how we need to reducing capacity in restaurants businesses provided vital Inward investment was needed wants to go. have systems that have sufficient by 50%, which reduced employment in remote areas of onshore, and that could only “If we get the fisheries and flexibility for communities to be consumption by that amount. Scotland. If they were not helped, come with government incentives.