France and China adopted a joint declaration “for enhanced cooperation” on biodiversity and the ocean on Monday, May 6, on the occasion of Xi Jinping’s state visit. Without any major announcement but with the promise to keep their commitments.

A  joint declaration for strengthened cooperation between France and China on biodiversity and the ocean was adopted by the two countries on the second day of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to France, from 5 to 7 May. This is in particular intending to find common positions before the next United Nations conference on the oceans (Unoc), which will be held in June 2025 in Nice.

The year 2024 augurs change for fish farming in Paca: two new concessions have been awarded by the state services, reports Produit de la Mer. 

Decisions rare enough to be noted, the fish farming sector bringing together less than ten producers. Among them, are a majority of artisans. This is the case of Jérémy Vantouroux, 26, who obtained a 5,000 square meter concession at the end of 2021 located in Lazaret Bay, in the Var. He aims to produce between 5 and 7 tonnes of sea bass (sea bass), sea bream, and lean meat each year to sell to individuals and restaurateurs. “When I saw that a colleague had managed to obtain his concession in 2020, I said to myself ‘Why not me’ ”, he says. 

This type of installation is very rare for several reasons. There is a lack of maritime space in coastal areas. This is why the Dirm (interregional sea directorate) is currently revising the regional aquaculture development plan which makes it possible to identify areas suitable for aquaculture. Setting up represents a very heavy financial cost, especially since the growth period of the fry is long (it takes three years to start marketing).

Aquafrais Cannes, a market leader in the region, is also at a turning point in its history. The company obtained a new concession of 24,000 square meters a few months ago, which should allow it to double its production within two years, going from 600 to 1,200 tonnes produced per year.

Author/Source:Feriel ALOUTI / Produit de la Mer

Sentenced to prison for abetting murder the large fishing businessman Oleg Kan is wanted in a murder case; he is also accused of smuggling worth RUB 2.6 billion. Lawyers reported that he had died and asked to close the case. The prosecution called this statement false

On the 7th, defense attorneys for Oleg Kang, who was sentenced to 17 years in prison for his role in the murder of a businessman in 2010, filed an appeal against the sentence. Multiple Russian media outlets reported on the same day.

The death of businessman Oleg Kan, known as the “crab king,” was staged. This was stated by a representative of the Prosecutor General's Office during a meeting of the arbitration court on the department's claim against Kan and several other fishing owners.

The Prosecutor General's Office indicated that the registry offices of St. Petersburg and the Sakhalin region presented the same certificates stating that Kan's death was not registered. In addition, relatives did not contact the registry office, although the law requires filing a statement about the death of a person if it becomes known.

In February 2020, the Khabarovsk Regional Court granted the investigation's request to arrest Oleg Kan in absentia. The entrepreneur was accused of organizing the contract murder of businessman Valery Phidenko in 2010.

In the second criminal case, which was sent to the court of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk, Oleg Kan is accused of organizing a criminal community, smuggling live crab to Japan.

The Iwate company becomes the production base for in processed seafood products for raw consumption.

Nissui Co., Ltd. (Representative Director and President Executive Officer Shingo Hamada, Minato-ku, Tokyo) announced that Musashino Foods Co., Ltd. (Representative Director and President Kazumi Musashino, Rikuzentakata City, Iwate Prefecture), which has strengths in processed seafood products for raw consumption, will acquire the company by transferring all its shares.

It will serve as the Nissui Group's production base for processed marine products for raw consumption, and will be linked to the marine products business's objectives of the medium-term management plan "Good Foods Recipe 1" (FY2022-2024): "expanding the aquaculture business" and "promoting the use of food products."

All employees of the company will continue to be employed.

The company has expanded its business with a focus on frozen-sliced sushi products. Taking advantage of this acquisition, Nissui will utilize its production capabilities to begin producing products for raw consumption, such as sushi ingredients, using Nissui's domestic and international farmed fish and wild fish.

As a first step, Nissui Group will collaborate with a salmon farming business in Hirota Bay in the same

The previous fiscal year's dividend was increased by 15 yen, and this fiscal year's dividend will be increased by 15 yen individual stocks

Maruha Nichiro [TSE P] announced its financial results after the market close on May 7th (15:00). Consolidated ordinary income for the fiscal year ending March 2024 was 31.1 billion yen, down 7.1% from the previous fiscal year, but is expected to increase by 2.9% from the previous fiscal year to 32 billion yen for the fiscal year ending March 2025. This is the fourth consecutive year of increased sales.

At the same time, the annual dividend for the previous fiscal year was increased from 70 yen to 85 yen (65 yen in the previous fiscal year), and the company has decided to increase the dividend this fiscal year to 100 yen, an increase of 15 yen from the previous fiscal year.

Consolidated ordinary income for the January-March quarter (4Q), which is the results for the most recent three months, fell significantly to 870 million yen, down 66.9% from the same period of the previous year, and the operating profit margin deteriorated from 1.1% to 0.5% in the same period of the previous year.

In a letter addressed to Ms. Charlina Vitcheva, the Pelagic Advisory Council (PelAC) has voiced concerns regarding the process of adopting a delegated act under EU Regulation 2023/2842.

Specifically, PelAC members are apprehensive about the criteria used to define conditions pertaining to the landing and weighing of fish catches, as well as the subsequent listing of compliant ports.

Source:  Oliver McBride / The Fishing Daily l Read the full article here

Suardíaz Shipping Lines, one of Europe's RoRo Car Carrier shipping companies, has added a new ship to its fleet to operate in the Atlantic corridor that connects Morocco with northern Europe: the ship m/v Asturias that has been sailing until now under the name 'Viking Amber' and which has a loading capacity of 4200 CEU. This operation, the company explains, belongs to the investment plan that Suardíaz Shipping Lines has been developing for the last 5 years and which amounts to more than 100 million dollars. Juan Riva, CEO of Suardíaz Group explains that "with the incorporation of the Asturias ship we continue with our fleet renewal and emissions reduction plan with ships of greater efficiency and capacity to respond to market demand."

Source: Industrias Pesqueras l Read the full article here

The National Association of Canned Fish Manufacturers (Anfaco-Cecopesca) has formalized its definitive entry into EFFOP (acronym in English for the European Association of Fish Oil and Meal Manufacturers), the European employers' association of that sector of the seafood chain. industry. Anfaco's entry into the European entity appeared in its 2024-2026 Strategic Plan, which involves "strengthening its sectoral representativeness and promoting technical associations as a lever that defends the legal security of companies," it explains in a statement.

Source: La Voz de Galicia l Read the full article here

Bacterial kidney disease (BKD) and pancreas disease (PD) had been detected at a Norwegian fish farm site from which almost 14,000 salmon escaped, site operator Lerøy has confirmed.

A tear in the net of a pen containing harvest-ready fish with an average weight of 7.3 kg was discovered at the Reitholmen farm in Fillfjorden in Hitra municipality on the evening of Sunday, May 5.

Source: fishfarmingexpert  l Read the full article here

Environmental charity Wildfish has formally appealed against a change in the rules on what can be called “Scottish salmon”.

Last month the UK Government approved a request to amend the “Protected Geographical Indication” (PGI) for “Scottish farmed salmon” to “Scottish salmon”.

The PGI rules set out strict criteria for regional food products, specifying not only where they must be from but also how they must be produced. In the case of Scottish salmon this sets out approved production methods and quality controls, covering  arrange of issues from feed to fish welfare.

Source: Fish Farmer  l Read the full article here