Mid-week in Newlyn.

Spring is in the air and Summer won't be far behind...

as Andy Wheeler gives the Applied Zoology and Conservation course students from Cornwall College the benefit of his vast fishing knowledge...

though judging by the sideways look he doesn't seem to have convinced one of them...

signs of summer as the number of Jon Dory landed increases slowly...

along with a good mix of rays...

and this pristine brill from the Imogen III...

red mullet back on the menu...

grey gurnard...

and langoustine are a sure sign the WSS has been fishing north of the Scillys...

corroborated by the AIS trace from VesselTracker...

name these fish...

yet more John Dory...

on a full market, with most of the fish coming from the inshore fleet...

including this prime blackjack...

monk tail...

brill...

accompany this good shot of Dovers and lemon sole from the Imogen III...

it takes two to tango...

more quality flats from the Ocean Harvest...

ray carcasses are saved for use by the crabbing fleet for bait...

prime fish from the Lisa...

getting the once over from young Mr Stevens...

as the inshore trawler Shiralee heads for the market...

its says what it is on the box...

with such a busy market there are fish being held over...

for tomorrow's market...

it might be glorious sunshine but there's still a little nip in the air in the early hours as buyers consult their books...

late season cuttles...

just some of the fish now brought ashore under the new discard rule...

"step out of your boots"...

inshore boats like the Shiralee makes use of insulated tubs to carry slush ice...

Maverick, master of line-caught pollack fishing..

TO20, Rowse's latest crabber almost set for sea...

the sardine fleet at rest...

Ocean Harvest, typical of the inshore fleet of years ago...

new nets ready to go aboard...

new pots ready to go aboard...

as the Shiralee heads out to sea...

what's in a name...

it shouldn't be too long before the new lifeboat house is in working order...

classic Folkboat varnished mahogany hulled yacht for sale...

as the sun rises warm air...

meets a much colder land and sea mass causing localised fog...

greaser Steve keeps the Louisa N in safe working order...

just enough time to take a quick break from the mornings jobs and share a few minutes of banter.

Live from Parliament: "Is Defra ready for Brexit?"

There are plenty fo questions that you might want to put to Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs today.

Environment, Food and Rural Affairs - Oral Evidence Session

 Is Defra ready for Brexit?

Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Way back in September 2017, well in advance of the original Brexit date the letter below was sent to Nigel Gooding at Defra. It's the kind of question that many in the industry - from fishermen to processors and associated trades - would seek answers to from the department. His reply was, "I'll look into this and get back to you later."

Said author of the letter, Ian Kinsey, "There's a lot of talk about becoming a leading fisheries nation, getting it right and doing the right thing - this starts with taking responsibility and actually 'leading'."

"The EU referendum and the majority vote to leave the EU was met with jubilation from the UK fishing industry, and has been characterised by many as "a sea of opportunity". The BIG question now is in what manner this "sea of opportunity" is to be realised for the fishermen of the UK? The benefits of leaving the EU, and the infamous CFP are numerous; and should empower the UK Government to design, and implement a fisheries management system that works for both fish resources, and the fishermen that depend upon them. The business of fishing has never been plain sailing, and a "Fisheries Brexit" doesn't seem like being an easy affair either.  

The media coverage of Michael Gove's recent visit to Denmark; where he gave "assurance" to Danish fishermen that they would still have access to UK waters post-Brexit, has been seen by many as yet another sell out of the fishing industry. Also, the reported clash between Michael Gove and Chancellor Philip Hammond over the use of fisheries as a bargaining chip in the wider Brexit negotiations has done little to lessen their fears. Both Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Emmanuel Macron have expressed that they will fight for their respective fishing industries to achieve the best possible post-Brexit deal. This has left many UK fishermen in a state of shock and disbelief, fearing now that the industry will once again be used as a pawn in achieving a favourable Brexit deal with the EU. It must be made absolutely clear that the UK post-Brexit WILL have an exclusive 200nm/ median line economic zone; and the UK fishing industry, finally will have exclusive access to the UK territorial seas out to 12 nm. 

The UK Government will have the absolute power to decide on who will be granted access, and under what conditions. Granting of reciprocal access to foreign vessels is a common practice in bilateral fisheries negotiations; where access can be granted on historical use of the area, quota swaps, and or, if there are exploitation pattern gains to be had in relation to catching older and larger fish.

It is a common acknowledgement within the fishing industry, that everything is paid for by what is caught in the net, and landed on the market. The main focus for the catching sector, irrespective of Brexit is to identify exclusive UK stocks, and quantify zonal attachment for stocks that are deemed to be shared. 

Realigning Relative State allocations in relation to ecosystem creep is of utmost importance; as a means of mitigating the possibility for chokes species such as NS hake, and area 7E haddock and 7D cod. This is especially important in respect to the Landings Obligation/Discard Ban, which comes into full force in 2019. The UK government has commissioned work into mapping the extent of zonal attachment for stocks shared with the EU and other parties such as Norway/Faeroe. This is an assignment that the UK should not pursue alone, if there is to be any chance of reaching a consensus and ratification by all parts. This work needs to be undertaken in a joint EU-UK working group, and under the scrutiny of an unbiased third party such as ICES, and with observers from countries such as USA and Canada. ICES have informed that they have not received any request from the UK Government to assist in this important and necessary work on defining zonal attachment.

Should the Government decide to use UK fish resources as a bargaining chip, then it's important to quantify how much fish, and for what it is being traded for"

Ian Kinsey September 2017. 

The world is your oyster

It would seem that recruiting young people to vocations that requires tolerance of long or unsociable hours, uncomfortable or challenging physical and environmental conditions, tolerance of what mother nature might throw our way or repetitive tasks i s fast becoming the number one challenge in modern Britain. Seafish's report provides some pretty uncomfortable reading for those who need to recruit staff from their local communities.

For many years, agriculture in particular has in the UK has relied heavily on seasonal workers from out of area or abroad - now the fishing industry seems to have followed suit. It has not gone unnoticed that many UK fishing vessels and fish processing plants are now heavily dependent on workers from abroad.

While this may suit individual business owners there may be consequences in the mid to long term with regard to recruitment for those skilled roles requiring consistency and continuity of service and supply - ie skippers, mates, engineers, production managers and managers from local communities.

Signs that this is more than a temporary hiccup have been acknowledged at the very highest level of government are in that next month will see the All Party Parliamentary Group on Fishing hold the first of its meetings to discuss the issue at a national level.

Here's Seafish CEO, Marcus Coleman and his monthly catch-up talking about this very issue!

Seafish maintain a comprehensive section for apprenticeships for every aspect of the fishing industry on their website.

These issues are not unique to the UK of course - take a look at the current campaign in France on the same subject New Horizons - (hint - use Translate) - seems those pesky grenouilles are one step ahead of the UK again!

Seafish Stakeholders Online Questionnaire 2019

Seafish Stakeholders Online Questionnaire 2019

Assenti Research have been commissioned by Seafish Industry Authority (Seafish) to carry out research with their stakeholders. This research will be used to benchmark previous research, to measure satisfaction with Seafish and to develop an understanding of how stakeholders want to work with Seafish in the future. The research is anonymous and confidential and should take no longer than 5 minutes to complete.

Participants are eligible to enter a free prize draw at the end of the questionnaire. First prize is a £250 Marks & Spencer voucher and there are a further 5 x £50 Marks Spencer vouchers to be won.

Click here to start the survey

If you have any questions please contact Sinead at Assenti Research - sinead@assenti-research.co.uk

Weed, seaweed, fish, shellfish, a curmudgeonly doctor and sea shanty group - the heady mix that is Port Isaac.

After seeing fish tallies from young George Cleave buying fish on the market this morning, a little background might not go amiss...

Port Isaac, first made famous by the film Saving Grace and subsequently by the Doc Martin series as Port Wenn, then ...

more recently put on Cornwall's seafood restaurant 'must eat at' circuit by the arrival of Nathan Outlaw's superb fish restaurant, Outlaw's Fish Kitchen...

which for a restaurant is almost uniquely able to source their daily piscine needs from Port Isaac fishermen just yards across the road...

with regular transport links courtesy of Mitchell's driver, John Daniels seen here getting his latest order from George...

so when George isn't out fishing you can often find him in his recently installed immaculate seafood school for fish fans...

willing to learn the basics of fish preparation or wanting to be more adventurous - there's an excellent story, "Fishing in the blood" on George and the Seafood School in the free online fishing magazine Hook & Net app...

the port is best known for its shellfish...

caught by George and others in the local fleet...

sailing from the picturesque harbour...

of course, if and when Newlyn opts to serve customers like George with all the advantages of a remote computer auction fishermen will undoubtedly see an increase in the number of buyers able to join the auction...

which will in turn see a rise in first-hand price for fish that can only be a good thing for boat owners, skippers and crewmen...

right now however, the Port is yet again in the spotlight as the immensely enjoyable and funny film based on the legendary sea shanty singers Fishermens Friends who can be found most Friday evenings singing their hearts out on the Platt in the heart of the village. 

Mild March Monday morning at Newlyn fish market.

Good to see George Cleave on the market this morning, such a purveyor of quality fish...

couldn't resist the temptation to pick up fish landed from the fleet's inshore trawlers that braved the huge equinoctial tides over the weekend...

comfortable conger...

name this fish...

big red tub gurnard, best baked whole...

there's a few John Dory on some of the grounds it seems, summer must be around the corner...

meanwhile plaice...

and lemons are now the main target for some of the inshore boats...

along with JDs...

while boats like the New Venture...

and Millennia have been doing well picking away at the lemons and Dovers...

on the north coats, St Ives handliners have been taking advantage of the abundant mackerel shoals...

though the vast majority are medium is size...

plenty of boxes of one species...

the beam trawler  St Georges put in a good shot of megrim sole...

today, as the big tides drop below 18 feet the rest of the netters should take ice and head for the hake grounds again...

plenty of early morning sun shines on the solar panels of the newly refurbished market in Newlyn...

St Georges relaxing after her trip...

not only is the Fishermen's Arms enclosed in a scaffolding shroud so is Pat Plumbridg'e house next door - she was a previous landlady of the pub back in the 60s and 70s...

another piece of history rusts out on a harbour pier...

Alice Louise, inshore trawler registered in Falmouth.