The Fisheries Department responded on Saturday to an audit office report accusing it of mismanaging public funds through a flawed tender process, reports CyprusMail. The EU’s anti-fraud office (Olaf) is investigating, following the audit office’s referral, which also flagged potential criminal offenses like abuse of power.
The controversy centers on the department awarding a €1.5 million more expensive contract for an oil recovery vessel, intended for marine pollution response, despite cheaper alternatives. The project has faced delays, and the audit office criticized the contractor for threatening to abandon the project if not granted an extension.
In a statement, the department insisted that all legal procedures were followed and that the decision prioritized quality. It stressed transparency throughout the process and welcomed any investigation.
The artisanal fishing unions are questioning whether this visit is linked to the government's delay in fulfilling a key promise. According to the Minister of Production, Sergio González, it was promised that by August 15, a supreme decree with concrete measures to combat illegal fishing would be published. However, this resolution remains pending.
On July 16, the government published a draft regulation reaffirming that all foreign squid vessels are required to use the SISESAT satellite beacon as a condition for entering Peruvian waters.
This proposed regulatory improvement came in response to massive protests by artisanal fishing unions, who denounced the increasing presence of Chinese fishing vessels in national ports, exacerbating the crisis in the squid fishing sector. The overwhelming arrival of foreign squid-jigging vessels has raised deep concerns among the fishermen, who see this situation as a direct threat to their livelihoods.
After detecting suspicious activities of illegal fishing in the area where the lemon fish lives, a joint operation was carried out between the National Navy, the NGO Mar Azul Uruguayo and the National Directorate of Aquatic Resources (DINARA), reports FMGenteOnline
The National Navy reported that through the Skylight platform, which uses satellite images and artificial intelligence algorithms to detect potential illegal fishing activities, the Taiwanese fishing vessel “FU MAO 268” was identified carrying out suspicious maneuvers.
It remained for several hours within the habitat area of ??the lemon fish, an ecosystem with a very important marine diversity, detailed the head of Public Relations of the National Navy, Alejandro Pérez.
Click on the image to enlarge it
When they became aware of the situation, the ROU23 “Maldonado” vessel and a helicopter intercepted the fishing vessel.
The images captured by the helicopter revealed the presence of fresh fish on the deck of the “FU MAO 268,” as well as other signs of fishing.
During the port inspection, pink snapper was found, a species that, according to the recorded trajectory of the ship, could only have been caught in the area where the lemon fish lives, within “our exclusive economic zone,” said Pérez.
For the moment, the DINARA resolution is awaited on the sanctions corresponding to the ship for carrying out unauthorized fishing activities.
The course was held at Oxxean facilities and lasted 36 hours. This initiative allowed participants to level up their knowledge and acquire new tools that allow them to optimize their processes, improve decision-making and innovate.
The representative of Transportes McDowell, Verónica Ruiz, thanked AquaChile for the opportunity: “This course has been a tremendously enriching experience that has not only expanded my knowledge on the subject, but has also strengthened my skills to apply them in the workplace and also with collaborators. We hope to continue having these training opportunities that AquaChile presents to us in these spaces that are fundamental for our growth as an SME and also to be a contribution to the industry.”
Meanwhile, Carlos García, from an aquaculture service company, said: “The course helped us a lot to realize the administrative deficiencies, since it is a fundamental part. We are very focused on the operational issue and we somewhat neglect the financial and administrative part, which are important. It gave us the tools that we can use, it gave us support alternatives and, at the same time, it allowed us to interact with different companies, share knowledge, strengths, weaknesses. And it allows us to make more informed decisions or how to look for more information to improve the financial area and, it results in us having better management.”
The Norwegian Food Safety Authority and the Brazilian authorities agree on the conditions for the export of aquaculture products to Brazil. Already from 15 September, the Norwegian Food Safety Authority will be able to issue health certificates for products from aquaculture to Brazil.
The health certificate covers all species and products from aquaculture, from fillets to whole, gutted fish, all forms of preservation, including smoked products. Aquaculture facilities that have suspected or proven ILA or PD will not be able to export to Brazil.
"The Norwegian Food Safety Authority works with market access for Norwegian seafood and agricultural products abroad. A number of countries that Norway exports to have requirements for food and input product safety, animal health, animal welfare, fish health, fish welfare and plant health, and Brazil is among these. Through negotiations, which have been ongoing since 2021, we have now reached an agreement on a certificate for products from aquaculture, and that is pleasing for the Norwegian seafood industry",says Ingunn Midttun Godal, managing director of the Norwegian Food Safety Authority.
Brazil is the sixth most populous country in the world with over 200 million inhabitants. The country is betting on increased seafood consumption, and is one of the most important markets for farmed salmon from Chile.
Sao Paulo --Japanese Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tetsushi Sakamoto attended a food event in Sao Paulo on Wednesday, trying some dishes using Japanese fishery products to promote them.
Japanese food culture is established in Brazil, which has the biggest community of Japanese descent outside Japan. Brazilians are increasingly interested in Japanese food in line with the growing popularity of trips to the Asian country.
Japan has been hit by China's import ban on Japanese fishery products. China, which used to be a big importer of such items, began the measure last year in response to Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc.'s discharges of tritium-containing treated water from its Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant into the sea.
Tokyo sees Brazil as a promising market and aims to expand sales of fishery products there.
During the event, Sakamoto tried oysters from Hiroshima and Okayama prefectures. "The taste of raw oysters spreads throughout the mouth," he said. "I feel as if I were swimming in the sea."
Sernapesca published its well-known Report with health background for freshwater and seawater, which summarizes the productive and health situation during 2023.
In terms of production, the distribution of farms operating by species, 64% corresponded to Atlantic salmon farms, 28% to coho salmon farms, and 7% to rainbow trout farms. Compared to 2022, active farms decreased by 0.3% and 19% for Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout, respectively, and coho salmon farms increased by 25%.
Although aquaculture is generally considered a private, business sector activity, it depends on shared resources and ecosystem services, “and therefore requires collaborative management of risks and resources.” It is on this premise that FAO believes that co-management of aquaculture is essential to improve the production of aquatic foods in line with its vision of “Blue Transformation.” In this sense, it considers that in order to guarantee the continued contribution of aquaculture to the production of nutritious aquatic foods, it is necessary to manage shared access to key resources -
19-20 SEPTEMBER, HILTON REYKJAVÍK NORDICA HOTEL – The 5th edition of the Icelandic Fisheries Conference, which runs alongside the Icelandic Fisheries Exhibition gets underway.
The Fish Waste for Profit conference focuses on a growing and potentially extremely lucrative sector, the reutilisation of fish processing by-products.
Estimates reveal that 43% of fish and shellfish resources end up as wastage.
India’s Department of Fisheries has designated the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) as a Centre of Excellence for seaweed cultivation.
As a result, the Mandapam Regional Centre of CMFRI in Mandapam, Tamil Nadu will serve as a hub for research, development, training and capacity building in seaweed cultivation.
The centre will promote sustainable seaweed farming practices and address key challenges in the area with an aim to enhance India’s role in the global seaweed industry.
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CYPRUS
The Fisheries Department responded on Saturday to an audit office report accusing it of mismanaging public funds through a flawed tender process, reports CyprusMail. The EU’s anti-fraud office (Olaf) is investigating, following the audit office’s referral, which also flagged potential criminal offenses like abuse of power.
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NORWAY
The health certificate covers all species and products from aquaculture, from fillets to whole, gutted fish, all forms of preservation, including smoked products. Aquaculture facilities that have suspected or proven ILA or PD will not be able to export to Brazil.
BRAZIL
Japanese food culture is established in Brazil, which has the biggest community of Japanese descent outside Japan. Brazilians are increasingly interested in Japanese food in line with the growing popularity of trips to the Asian country. 10_53_57.png)
Sernapesca
EUROPEAN UNION 10_45_49.png)
Although aquaculture is generally considered a private, business sector activity, it depends on shared resources and ecosystem services, “and therefore requires collaborative management of risks and resources.” It is on this premise that 
ICELAND 10_20_07.png)
19-20 SEPTEMBER, HILTON REYKJAVÍK NORDICA HOTEL – The 5th edition of the Icelandic Fisheries Conference, which runs alongside the Icelandic Fisheries Exhibition gets underway.
INDIA 10_06_46.png)
India’s Department of Fisheries has designated the ICAR-Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI) as a Centre of Excellence for seaweed cultivation.
