Crew of PD147

Dutch-Danish cooperation doubles MSC certified plaice catch

07 September 2010

The North Sea plaice catch eligible to bear the MSC ecolabel for sustainable fisheries has doubled. Eight Danish vessels [1] have now joined the certificate of the Ekofish Group, bringing the certified plaice quota to 5,000 tonnes.

About the fishery

The Dutch Ekofish Group North Sea plaice twinrig fishery was certified by Moody Marine Ltd. in June 2009. Its UK-registered vessels target plaice for the northern European market. The fishery uses large meshes of 120-140mm. As a result, undesired by-catch of small fish (discards) is very limited. As part of the ongoing certification of the fishery, Ekofish Group has voluntarily agreed with WWF and North Sea Foundation to close selected areas and to participate in scientific research programmes to map the impacts of the gear on the seabed. The impacts of the eight Danish vessels that have joined the certificate were already taken into account in the original fishery assessment. The Danish vessel owners will comply with all of the certification requirements placed on the Ekofish Group.

What the Dutch say

Louwe de Boer, General Manager of Ekofish Group says: “MSC certification absolutely gave us an edge in the market. There is a strong demand for high quality, sustainable plaice from the North Sea. We are very happy that other plaice fishermen recognised this and we can now more easily fulfil this growing demand by working together with our Danish colleagues.”

What the Danish say

Jens Bollerup, representing the eight Danish vessels adds: “This is a true international cooperation: five UK-registered vessels owned by Dutch fishermen plus eight Danish vessels landing MSC certified sustainable plaice at certified Dutch and Danish auctions for European consumers. By joining Ekofish Group’s certificate we will be helping to ensure the economic stability of the North Sea plaice fishery by meeting the growing market demand for sustainable seafood”.

What the MSC says

Nathalie Steins, Manager Benelux of MSC says: “This cooperation demonstrates that sustainable fisheries do not stop at national borders or country of registration, and that successful cross-border collaboration can be achieved through collective efforts of all parties involved”.

More information

MSC: media.nl@msc.org or call +31 (0)70-360 5979

Louwe de Boer, General manager Ekofish Group: +31 (0)6 53155849/ louwe@ekofishgroup.nl

Jens Bollerup, Danish representative Ekofish Group: +45 (0)45 214 25011 / bollerup@hvidesande.dk

[1] The following vessels have joined the Ekofish Group North Sea plaice certificate: RI 93 Avance; RI 236 Lisbeth Frich (under construction); RI 324 Mette-Kathrine; RI 427 Mette-Helene; RI 468 Juli-Ane; RI 568 Jette-Mona; L 415 Stormy and L 654 Pia Glanz