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This report documents the development of a website designed to provide information which would assist scallop processors in biotoxin risk assessment. The website provides information from four reference sources: Food Standards Agency Scotland biotoxin and phytoplankton monitoring results; an industry biotoxin database; a biotoxin risk calendar and the Met Office chlorophyll map for UK waters. Each information source was presented in an easily interpreted graphical format together with a laymen’s explanation of how the reference information should be used and interpreted. In addition, online training videos were provided.

The FisherMap protocol has been revised in order to map out commercial fishing grounds, main target species and gear contribution to fishermen’s livelihood. The initial version developed by Finding Sanctuary, the Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ) project for the South-west of England, used a questionnaire and mapping survey followed by validation meetings to describe the extent of fishing grounds. The revised protocol, used by the three new MCZ regional projects, links individual grounds to percentage gross earnings. Using data from the Seafish annual fisheries economic survey data by fleet segment, it will now be possible to convert individual percentage values into a common currency across fisheries, in a way similar to the 100 pennies approach pioneered by Ecotrust in California. The revised protocol also uses a simplified and standardised gear description directly compatible with the codes used by the Marine and Fisheries and other Agencies. This will make it easier to cross-validate data from various sources. However, the coarse time scale (overall average over last 5 years) and precise local spatial definition used in FisherMap provide unique and rich information that are not collected elsewhere. With the revised FisherMap, the validation group meetings will also have to discuss and finalise the overall economic value of composite maps of local fishing grounds. The same, or subsequent, group meetings presenting the regional conservation priorities will ask fishermen to share their expert local knowledge of essential fish habitats, features and species targeted by the conservation objectives. Local knowledge will be essential to obtain meaningful estimates of both economic and environmental impacts (positive and negative) that the MCZ regional projects need to estimate for their Impact Assessment (IA) of each proposed network and associated management regime. MCZ regional projects would greatly benefit from using Seafish species guides and information on basic fishing methods, and from collaborative work with Seafish, especially Seafish economists to devise a sampling strategy for fishing vessels along the coast and use the best economics data available to conduct their Impact Assessments.

March news alert sent to FMIG subscribers on 24 March 2022.

he Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), Seafish and the Northern Ireland (NI) Scallop Association have recently completed a report investigating the optimal areas for scallop reseeding in the Irish Sea. This work was commissioned due to an increase in exploitation of scallops around the NI coastline and a desire by industry to be proactive in enhancing long-term sustainability of stocks. Sites selected through industry engagement as proposed reseeding sites were examined by AFBI scientists to ensure that they met the characteristics required for successful settlement of scallops. Seabed habitat maps were combined to provide information for the full sea area under consideration. Scallop catches from the annual AFBI scallop survey were mapped with the full habitat map to determine the areas where scallops were present and identify the underlying habitat type. This allowed a map to be created which showed the suitable habitat for adult scallops within NI waters. All of the proposed reseeding sites fell within areas of suitable habitat. To examine further characteristics of the proposed sites, a combination of measured and modelled data was used. Salinity, food availability, bed stress (natural physical disturbance of the seabed by wave action and/or tidal currents), particulate inorganic matter, suspended particulate matter, abundance of predators, spawning season, larval dispersal and hydrodynamic models were all considered. The above information was presented to the project steering group, and using the data provided, the steering group selected the most suitable sites for reseeding from the original 13 proposed sites. Three reseeding sites (Whitehead, Drumfad Bay and South Bay) have initially been proposed, with a fourth, Roaring Rock, having potential for any future reseeding plans. The NI Scallop Association will now present the results of this work to DAERA to ask for regulation to assist in the protection of these new areas through a ban on mobile fishing gear.

Minutes from Scottish Seafish Advisory Committee (SSAC) meeting held on 18 June 2024.

Following negative reports in the media surrounding wild sea bass , the project set out to improve the traceability and visibility of the sustainable line caught bass fishery. The project set-out to do this through individual tagging of each fish caught and with each vessel engaged in the fishery having its own recognised number which would be shown on a publicly accessible website.

August news alert sent to CLG subscribers on 11 August 2022.

In cooperation with commercial partners, Seafish has developed systems for weighing and labelling of boxed fish at sea in response to market and legislative requirements to provide accurate product defination and provenance at the point of first sale. This report describes how the data required by law or for trading may be captured and handled electronically on landing at small inshore ports to improve marketing and administrative efficiencies.

This is Seafish's response to the call for comments on the draft Marine Conservation Zone Project Ecological Network Guidance to the Regional Stakeholder Groups on Identifying Marine Conservation Zones, put out by Natural England and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. The original consultation document is available from http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/Images/100317_ENG_v8-0_tcm6-17607.pdf. Seafish is concerned with the lack of transparency in the development of the draft guidance and with the weak scientific evidence on which the draft guidance is based.

September news alert sent to FMIG subscribers on 7 October 2022.