Iceland adds weight surcharge to container fish – Fishupdate.com

Iceland adds weight surcharge to container fish Published:  21 December, 2009 ICELAND’S Minister of Fisheries Jon Bjarnson has decided that from January five per cent will be added to the weight of container fish that is calculated  from the quota back in Iceland. The move will largely affect container fish shipped each week to the markets at Grimsby and added

When unprocessed fresh fish is exported by containers, it is customary for this to be weighed at the port or market of destination.But for some time the minister had been contemplating to let the weighing take place in Iceland, before export.   However, he has been forced to  abandoned this idea in the face of strong opposition from the Icelandic fishing industry and others.    But the country’s  fishing operators felt that the five per cent surcharge was the lesser of the two evils.  It is generally acknowledged that fish will lose some weight from the time of catch until landing takes place. So far the Humber’s fish buyers and merchants are not over  concerned about the move, but they are keeping a close watch on the situation. Last year the Icelanders considered imposing a 10 per cent surcharge on container fish shipped to the UK, but withdrew the plan are strong representations from the Humber processing industry.   They wrote to the Icelandic government stating “We are proud of our relationship with Iceland and our proximity to mainland Europe.  This has enabled a vigorous export trade to develop.  The abolition of this duty can only add value to our industry by sustaining jobs which, in turn, stimulate economic prosperity for our region.”