Sardines shine at the MSC/ASC UK 2024 awards!

Despite some pretty atrocious weather to travel in, many of the non-fishing folks die to attend the MSC awards later in the day braved the heavy overcast skies and pouring rain over Plymouth's Sutton Harbour...

and assembled on the quay to be welcomed by Intrafish's Adam Pillar...

and Hugh Grant look-alike, Lewis Colam who had arranged for their Parkol built Admiral Gordon...

to be alongside so that the skipper and crew...

could demonstrate net mending...

cod end closing...

fish identification...

safety at sea...

and the fish-finding and naviagation tools available to the skipper in the wheelhouse...

the MMO were welcome on board for a change to talk through the work they do to see that all the regulations...

 are being adhered to at sea with things like mesh sizes...

then the gigantic tinned BBQ was already fired up...

and serving grilled sardines...

despite the fish auction closing the market itself is still in daily use...

sited directly opposite the old fish market on the Barbican...

then it was time to take walk around the corner to watch some of the familiar fish found in the Western Approaches at the National Marine Aquarium...

the MSC UK awards were held in The Box museum, gallery and archive with its stunning collection of restored figureheads...

some of which hung over the stage...

hosting the event at The Box was down to Tudor Owen from Plymouth City Council, who are hugely proud and supportive of the industry in Plymouth...

The forward-thinking initiative of a Jersey lobster fisherman and a collaborative group of Cornish sardine fishers have been rewarded with wins in two of the most prestigious categories at the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) UK annual awards.

Ian Syvret, Skipper of The Shilling, part of the 190-strong Normandy and Jersey Lobster Fishery, was named Fishing Hero of the Year for his efforts to ensure the commercial success of MSC certified lobsters, while the Ocean Leadership award went to the Cornish Sardine Management Association (CSMA) for the initiative they showed with a new scheme to safeguard plentiful, sustainable catches for many years.

Both winners received their awards at a ceremony hosted by comedian and environmental economist Dr Matt Winning.

Determined to build on the achievement of the Normandy and Jersey Lobster Fishery becoming the first European MSC-certified lobster fishery in 2011, Ian, in close collaboration with the MSC and local merchants, developed an elastic claw band that meets Consumer Ready Tamper Proof Packaging criteria. This innovation enabled Ian to sell his sustainably caught lobster live with the blue MSC ecolabel in Jersey and abroad, and has paved the way for other Jersey fishers to follow suit.

After receiving the award, Ian said: 

“I am very pleased to have won this award. It’s recognition that I have been putting in a lot of effort to try and highlight that we have a sustainable Jersey MSC lobster. I’m very proud of Jersey having this accreditation and I was fed up with people coming to the island and not realising we had something special. So, I thought I am going to do something about this. I decided if chain of custody is a problem we had to circumnavigate the tamper proof problem. It took a year of thinking about it and being stubborn and not taking no for an answer and then two years developing it.”

Ian fought off stiff opposition for this award from Mike Bailey of the Poole Harbour clam and cockle fishery who was nominated for always going above and beyond to promote the fishery and its sustainability, including taking several documentary film companies in his boat to show them “how it is done”.

This year’s MSC award was handmade by eco homeware company Rawr, using crushed cockle shells from the MSC certified Thames Cockle fishery and mussel and scallop shells from Shetland’s MSC certified fisheries.

Lisa Bennett, MSC UK & Ireland Senior Fisheries Outreach Manager, said: 

“These two winners exemplify innovation and a future focussed approach, and we are thrilled that we can highlight these achievements through the MSC UK Awards. Ian Syvret overcame a significant obstacle to ensure he can sell his catch to sustainable seafood lovers far and wide.Meanwhile, the Cornish Sardine Management Association have shown fishers everywhere how to take control of their own destiny with their own data. I hope both winners will inspire their colleagues around the British coast.”

Other notable winners on the night included:

Sainsbury’s – awarded Gold in the Supermarket of the Year category for offering the greatest range of MSC certified seafood Lussmanns, a group of six independent restaurants with a menu loaded with sustainable seafood dishes that change with the seasons - named Foodservice Champion of the Year Birds Eye and Iceland rewarded for their perfect fish finger sandwich formula marketing campaign The MSC and ASC 2024 UK Awards, sponsored by Seafood Scotland, Plymouth Gin and Plymouth, Britain’s Ocean City, are a celebration of the commitment to sustainable seafood across the whole supply chain from ocean to plate. A complete list of award winners can be seen here.

Gus Caslake was summoned to the stage to collect the award for Ocean Leadership on behalf of the Cornish Sardine Management Association. 

In 2023, the association initiated a self-sampling scheme which sees skippers submit detailed weekly catch data. This is shared with scientists at the Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (Cefas) and International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, providing them with key insights on stocks, size and age distribution as well as mortality rates and migration patterns. Armed with this data they can make well-informed decisions on catch limits, helping to prevent overfishing and secure the long-term future of the Cornish sardine population.

Gus Caslake of CSMA said: 

“It’s all about collaboration between our skippers and processors as a closely linked up organisation from sea to plate. The award is a testament to the work the guys do on the ground catching the fish and processing the highest quality Cornish sardines you can get. The award will help us to demonstrate that we’re catching and handling the fish in a sustainable manner.”

Then, it was the turn of Queterie NG from to accept the award MSC Product of the Year none on behalf of Tesco who scooped the Product of the Year award for its Finest Cornish Sardines in Tomato Sauce. This was voted on in a public vote..,

Tom Pascoe, skipper in the Cornish sardine fleet took time away from fishing aboard the Charlotte Clare to attend the awards and was on stage to talk about how this season has been and his faith in the future of the fishery... 

the morning after provided a bracing walk to Plymouth Hoe and the recently commissioned statue in honour of merchant seamen and fishermen.

Betting on the dogs

With a 5:30am start, this morning's packed fish market provided a great opportunity for members of the National Federation of Fish Friers to see first hand the journey fish make from the boat...

to the auction...

and see first hand the huge range of fish species up for auction. The main purpose of the visit, organised by the Cornish Fish Producers Organisation, is to explore the introduction of spurdog, once hugely popular in London and sold as rock salmon.  Spurdogs were restricted to a zero quota for many etars, despite the boats finding them everywhere and in increasing numbers. 

Last year the ban was finally lifted after several years of a small quota allowance for the gill net fleet, by which time the market for these tasty and easy to prepare fish had all but dried up so much so that the spurdogs on the market yesterday morning made only 20 per kilo. By comparison, big dogs were making 50p a kilo 30 years go when landings made by longliners and netters were at their peak. Later today the friers will get to see first hand how the fish are caught and handled aboard the gillnetter, Silver Dawn which landed to the market earlier. Following the tour of te boat they head off to the processor Falfish and enjoy some of the spurdogs landed on the market this morning in their taste test kitchen. Fish education is one of the CFPO's priorities in supporting the Cornish fishing fleet - in a country where 80% of the population think a hake is a garden tool - as per the Guardian article a few weeks ago!

 

Shags harassed by thieving gulls!

Coming to the end of the neap tide, the overnight rain has stopped and it's hovering around the 14˚ mark this morning...

with fine-ish weather over the weekend the market was end-to-0end with fish from four of the hake netters and just about every inshore boat that was able to put to sea...

the Stelissa...

Silver Dawn...

and the Ygraine filled most of the first bay...

with the addition of inshore fish...

including this huge trip of ray from Tom's Guardian...

the were late season John Dory...

and good mix of quality fish like soles and monk...

there were plenty of spurdogs all looking for a market...

and a smattering of bonito tuna again...

the Ocean Pride filled most of bay 3 with her hake...

along with some cracking inshore red mullet...

in total, three stunning bluefin tuna...

were landed, the boats now eeking out the remainder of their individual 10,000kg quotas

cuckoo wrasse, one of the more colourful fish on the market...

Cod has been at the bass again...

the lumpers have made a start on clearing today's big landings...

as young Jeremy takes on bait to feed his pots...

it's not just people who have to keep their eyes peeled on their pasties when gulls are in the near vicinity, half a dozen shags feeding on small fish are hounded by lazy local gulls in search of an easy breakfast!

 

Consultation on the proposed Channel Skates and Rays Fisheries Management Plan

 

Overview

The purpose of this consultation is to seek your views on the proposed Southern North Sea and Channel skates and rays Fisheries Management Plan (FMP), its policies and proposed actions and measures. We are also seeking your views on the likely environmental effects of the FMP, as set out in the environmental report.

As set out in the JFS, FMPs are to be developed for those stocks that are of social and economic importance, at risk of significant over-exploitation and have an ecosystem significance. Therefore, the Southern North Sea and English Channel skates and rays FMP in its first iteration covers the following seven species (11 stocks) of rays within English waters in International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) divisions 4b and 4c (Southern North Sea) and 7d and 7e (English Channel):

thornback ray (Raja clavata)

blonde ray (Raja brachyura)

undulate ray (Raja undulata)

small-eyed ray (Raja microocellata)

spotted ray (Raja montagui)

cuckoo ray (Leucoraja naevus)

starry ray (Amblyraja radiata).

The southern North Sea and Channel skates and rays FMP sets out a pathway to the long-term sustainable management of the Southern North Sea and Channel skates and rays fisheries in English waters. The FMP sets out goals for the fishery and short and long-term actions to achieve them. 

Why your views matter

This consultation is an opportunity for you to help shape and influence the future of skates and rays management policy in England and builds upon previous engagement with industry.

Responses

This consultation will run for 14 weeks, closing at 23:59 on 19 January 2025. You can find the FMP and associated documents in the ‘related documents’ section at the bottom of this page.

Please read the consultation document before responding to this consultation.

To submit your consultation response please:

Complete the consultation questionnaire through this link.


Please scroll through the consultation doc below before completing the survey:

or send additional information or documents to the Fisheries Management Plans policy team by email to FMPconsultations@defra.gov.uk

respond by post using the address below

Fisheries Management Plans team
Marine & Fisheries Directorate
Seacole Building
2 Marsham Street

SW1P 4DF

Ideas a-plenty from the Concarneau twinning visit to Newlyn.

With the port's largest boat leaving the harbour...

leaving just the netter, Govenek of Ladram alongside the Mary Williams pier...

as Paul Durkin, chair of the harbour commissioners welcomed, in his best French, members of the twinning teams from Concarneau and Penzance...

then it was the turn Concarneau's mayor, Marc Bigot to reciprocate, also in french, but ably translated by Penzance's mayor Stephen Reynolds...

for many years, Marc headed up the Committee de Peche and the Concarneau Maritime Museum so his knowledge and understanding of the fishing industry are second to none - the working lunch held in the harbour boardroom saw a number of fishing and heritage representatives discuss opportunities for the mutual benefit of both - on the fishing side Cornwall Sardine Management Association chair, Gus Caslake was able to explore exchange visits of sardine fishermen and, with Newlyn's FISH Trust planning on developing the old Ice Works as heritage centre, Jeanette Ratcliffe was able to share their ideas and plans to tell the story of the Newlyn's rich maritime history...

there followed a slideshow of photos, in some cases going back over 100 years, with many examples of Concarneau and other Breton boats in Newlyn and a proposition that, with the changes coming for EU vessels in 2026, an opportunity for the online auctions systems used both here and in Brittany to join forces and enable Breton (and other) boats to land in Newlyn...

before leaving, Marc (left) presented Paul Durkin with an original print by Breton artist, Olivier Lapicque depicting a fisherman holding a huge tuna - Concarneau has a fleet of tuna boats that fish around the world...

after lunch, the harbour was left all quiet save the gulls enjoying the view from the comfort of the solar panels atop the market.