Cured fish dish delight

So, what does fish test like that has been left to ferment in cooked rice for six months taste like - you hardly need the sub titles in this one.

Keo Films, award winning digital media company best known in fishy circles for their Hugh's Fish Fight campaign also made this thought provoking documentary on the Japanese insatiable insane desire for fish - be they eat them alive, a bit alive and a bit dead, cooked, nearly cooked, raw, or just plain raw and then left for six months to ferment in rice.

Just what the Newlyn hake net boats need!

Latest news from the world of fish on Twitter:

Budding Rose ‏@buddingrose418

40 ton of hake landed tonight on Peterhead fishmarket .. Amazing new fishery in the North sea .. !!

Under 10s - Crucial! CEFAS is seeking Under 10m vessels to participate in self-sampling trial

Pass this on to a fishing friend! If you get involved YOU could earn up to £2,500 and do your bit for the future of Under 10m fishing in England!

Open publication - Free publishing - More cefas

Cefas are conducting a Self-Sampling trial with Under 10m vessels over the next 2 years, mainly using static gear. It has been mentioned numerous times that management measures for the under tens are imposed with no real evidence to support them, and that because of a lack of any evidence the industry have no argument for opposing them. 


The Data Collection Framework (set by Europe) for Cefas is robust and detailed but suffers from a lack of coverage, particularly from the Under 10m fleet. Understandings of the catch and discard patterns of the Under 10s is limited and there is a shortfall of information when compared to the Over 10s. 


A Self-Sampling scheme is an efficient and cost-effective data collection method that can be combined with observer data and involves fishermen in the assessments. It aims to contribute to a better understanding of fleet diversity and provide data that would normally be inaccessible. 


An advert and the Invitation to Tender will be in this week’s Fishing News. Hopefully, plenty of fishermen apply, especially those who stand up at meetings and say there’s no evidence – now’s your chance to provide some! 

Open publication - Free publishing - More cefas

Download and print off your own copy of the application form

Cefas is seeking 30 Under 10m vessels to participate in a two-year self-sampling trial under the project SESAMI – Self-Sampling of the Inshore sector. The aims of the project are twofold: 1) to collect evidence from Under 10m sector to support them in fisheries management decisions; and 2) to monitor discard patterns and develop strategies to reduce discards generated by Under 10m fishing vessels. The trial will take place between July 2012 and June 2014. As part of Defra’s project on practical steps towards reducing discards by the English and Welsh fleets, the SESAMI project has also received funding from EFF through the MMO. 


The project will be conducted by the Applied Fisheries Science and Technology Group at CEFAS, and managed by a Steering Group including representatives from NUTFA, IFCAs, MMO and Defra. We are looking for 15 Under 10m vessels fishing in Area VIId and another 15 Under 10m vessels fishing in Areas VIIe, f, g, and h to take part in the trial. Vessels that use different fishing techniques will be considered but priority will be given to vessels that use gill, trammel and tangle nets, and hand lines. In the interest of transparency and fairness, a selection protocol will be applied to all respondents. 


There will be a financial incentive for vessels that participate in this trial. 


The project will be conducted in two phases. 


The first phase will involve data collection by skippers and crew, and the validation of the data they collect by Cefas Observers. Observers will board participating vessels at agreed times with vessel skippers. 


In the second phase, participating vessels will be involved in trials to develop the most selective configurations and strategies for their gear. “This project is much needed as the Under 10m sector has been largely ignored when it comes to on-board sampling of their fishing activities. 


Historically, management and access decisions have then been made based on either very little or no data. It is very timely from a CFP timeline and I would urge all the Under 10m fishing fleets concerned to take part. The data collected will provide evidence to support future management decisions that more clearly reflect the particular beneficial aspects of the inshore fleet. 


Conducting the project in two phases is also effective as it will enable us to learn from the trial and feedback on progress,” said Jerry Percy, Chief Executive of NUTFA. 


CEFAS’s Dr Stephen Mangi, who will lead the project commented that “This project is in response to the Under 10m fishing fleets wanting to gather evidence on their fishing practices and we hope that vessel skippers will get involved. 


In the absence of robust information on discard levels, there is no evidence to support the preferred management options of different fishing sectors or to dispute the assumptions driving unsuitable proposals. Scientific observer programmes often suffer from low coverage relative to the total level of fishing activity, and therefore self-sampling will supplement the data collected by Observers.” 


For more information, contact Stephen Mangi on 01803 858636; 07827986113; or stephen.mangi@cefas.co.uk 


If you would like to take part please contact: 


For the South West, Samantha Smith on 07979 067 510 or 01736 350653 


For the South East, Simon Armstrong on 07979 575 776 or 01803 858636 


Act now! - the closing date for applications is 29 June 2012.

We wish.

Below is an extract from a story that appeared in a New Zealand media following evidence given by an observer aboard a Korean trawler operating in New Zealand waters off the South Island. The  N75 Oyang is in court accused of dumping nealry $1.3 million of fish over the course of two trips last year.


The evidence, was provided by independent observer Susannah Barham aboard the boat, who was appalled at the behaviour of the Korean master. As with many such fisheries observers the world over, she obviously hails from a  rather sheltered background with very different values and sensibilities!

"Barham's evidence told the court of seeing officers acting in an aggressive way towards crew members. She cited incidents of Kang giving crew "a quick smack across the head" or throwing fish at them. The factory manager and chief officer would yell at them in an angry and aggressive tone.

Crew would work for up to 10 hours to get processing completed when a trawl had been carried out, and there would be only a few hours' rest between trawls."

One can only imagine the reactions of all those deckys who used to work aboard the big sidewinders from Grimsby, Hull and Fleetwood being appalled at the thought of having a few harsh words or fish thrown at them by the skipper or mate, or worse still, having to work 10 hours without a break!!


Decky Learner - sung by Eddy Weeks who put the music to words from Stan Carter.

Enjoy this cameo of one trawlerman's life at sea on the big distant water trawlers.


Or even better, listen to this superb collection of recordings from some of the men who fished from Grimsby and Hull - "See, it's time Newlyn put an audio archive together like this" 


Quite right Billy.

On a mission for breakfast with the Mission shut on Saturdyay

Last of the old aluminium and plastic 10 stone (63.5 Kg) kits that were once used on the fish market at Newlyn........

watch out watch out there's a thief about.......

the Danmark, still sporting her Milford Haven registration now has a dark blue hull......

the aptly named Change of Course still in Newlyn after last Thursday's ordeal in a southeasterly gale......

as are a handful of passing yachts, Wales eems to be the popular home for many of the current boats in port.....

ice works view straight down the chute to the fishroom of the Harvest Reaper........

with the Mission no longer open on a Saturday morning an alternative provider of warmth and sustenance has had to be sourced for those wishing to catch up on the week's news from in and around the port......

so all hands headed over the road to the old Alan Brough Pottery building that now is home to the much lauded Duke Street café.........

to enjoy a pretty hearty breakfast - this is the 'not so hungry version'!