Astrid Fiske North Sea Herring Fishery

Fishery: Astrid Fiske North Sea Herring (Clupea harengus) Fishery (formerly called the North Sea Herring Swedish Pelagic Fishery)

Status:
The certification body, Food Certification International Ltd., have announced that the draft Assessment report for the Astrid Fiske North Sea Herring fishery is now available for public comment for a period of 30 days.

Any stakeholder wishing to comment on the report is invited to contact Ms Melissa McFadden no later than 5 pm GMT 8 May 2008.

Stakeholders are advised that they are to provide objective evidence in support of any additional claims or any claimed errors of fact in their response to the draft Assessment Report. Any comments made by stakeholders shall be document and forwarded by the certification body to its certification decision-making entity.

Last Updated: 04 April 2008

Location:
The fishery takes place in the North Sea, extending from the waters off the south western coast of Norway across to the Shetland Isles (ICES Area IVa), and as far south as the Devil’s Hole to the east of Arbroath, North East Scotland (ICES Area IVb)

Fishing Method: 
Pelagic purse seine.

Management:
The northern North Sea fishery is managed as part of the North Sea herring stock extending across ICES Areas IIa, IV and VIId.  This stock is managed according to the EU-Norway Agreement (December 1997) that is implemented in EU member states and Norway under National management systems, and advised by ICES. 

Main commercial market:
Maatjes herring is a high quality, high value product mainly sold on Dutch, Belgium and German markets.  It is a product made from herring that is just beginning to develop its ovary sacs, and it is the timing of this development that dictates where and when the fishery takes place.  Fish that is caught before the ovaries begin to develop, or after they have developed, are not suitable for the production of maatjes herring. 

Assessment details:
The assessment process began in April 2007 and is expected to take around 6 – 8 months.

Client:
Astrid Fiske AB
Fiskhamnsgatan
Rönnäng
Sweden

http://www.astridfiskexport.se/

Certification Body:
Food Certification International Ltd (FCI)
Findhorn House
Dochfour Business Centre
Dochgarroch
Inverness
IV3 8GY
Scotland
UK 

Tel: + 44 (0)870 286 2860
Fax:+ 44 (0)870 286 2861
Mobile: +44 (0)7834 206 935