Britain: An official handbook > 1993

BRITAIN 1993: AN OFFICIAL HANDBOOK
states, the trade in and marketing of fish and
fish products, and financial aid to promote
the adaptation and development of the
Community’s fishing fleet.
The fishing industry provides 59 per cent
by quantity of British fish supplies, and is an
important source of employment and income
in a number of ports.
Cod, haddock, whiting, herring, plaice and
sole are found in the North Sea off the east
coasts of Scotland and England; mackerel,
together with cod and other demersal fish, off
the west coast of Scotland; sole, plaice, cod,
herring and whiting in the Irish Sea; and
mackerel, sole and plaice off the south-west
coast of England. Nephrops, crabs, lobsters
and other shellfish are found in the inshore
waters all around the coast.
At the end of 1990 there were 16,967
fishermen in regular employment and 5,088
occasionally employed. The Government aims
to encourage the development of a viable,
efficient and market-oriented fisheries
industry within the CFP framework. Two
main policy issues are conservation of fish
stocks and capacity of the fleet.
Fish Caught
In 1990 demersal fish (caught on or near the
bottom of the sea) accounted for 44 per cent
by weight of total British landings, pelagic
fish (caught near the surface) for 41 per cent
and shellfish for 15 per cent. Landings of all
types of fish (excluding salmon and trout) by
British fishing vessels totalled 621,510 tonnes.
Cod and haddock represented 23 and 18 per
cent respectively of the total value of
demersal and pelagic fish landed, while
anglerfish (8 per cent), whiting (8 per cent),
plaice (7 per cent), mackerel (5 per cent), and
sole (4 per cent) were the other most
important sources of earnings to the industry.
The quayside value of the British catch of
wetfish and shellfish in 1990 was £431
million. Landings of nephrops represented 11
per cent of the total value of all British
landings of fish and shellfish in 1990.
Imports of fresh, frozen, cured and canned
salt-water fish and shellfish in 1991 totalled
287,079 tonnes, those of freshwater fish
46,835 tonnes, those of fish meal 258,453
tonnes and those of fish oils 4,771 tonnes.
Exports and re-exports of salt-water fish and
fish products amounted to 390,267 tonnes
and those of freshwater fish to 23,622 tonnes.
The Fishing Fleet
At the end of 1991 the British fleet consisted
of 10,871 registered vessels, including 424
deep-sea vessels longer than 24 4 m (80 feet).
Among the main ports from which the
fishing fleet operates are Aberdeen,
Peterhead, Fraserburgh (Grampian),
Lerwick (Shetland), Kinlochbervie,
Ullapool (Highland), North Shields
(Tyne and Wear), Grimsby
(Humberside), Lowestoft (Suffolk),
Brixham (Devon), Newlyn (Cornwall),
and Kilkeel, Ardglass and Portavogie
(Northern Ireland).
With the extension of fishery limits to 200
miles, Britain’s distant water fleet was
considerably reduced. A much smaller fleet
has, however, continued to maintain its
activities in distant waters.
The Government, in accordance with the
CFP agreement, aims to conserve fish stocks,
and to reduce total fish mortality, by
restricting the time fishing vessels may spend
at sea and to set down, as a licence condition,
precisely how time at sea will be defined,
notified and controlled. Its policy comprises
decommissioning, an extension of licensing,
technical conservation and ‘effort control’. It
is to make £25 million available for a cash-
limited decommissioning scheme. Licensing
is to be extended to the 7,000 vessels of 10 m
and under in length.
Fish Farming
Fish farming production is centred on
Atlantic salmon and rainbow trout, which are
particularly suited to Britain’s climate and
waters. Production of salmon and trout has
grown from less than 1,000 tonnes in the
early 1970s to some 40,000 tonnes of salmon
and 13,500 tonnes of trout in 1991. Scotland
produces the largest amount of farmed
salmon (40,000 tonnes in 1991—with a first-
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