Year: 2017

Svavar Hávarðsson at Fiskifréttir published an article about Lava Seafood the other day, but the company is a fast-growing company where employees have largely received their education from Matís.

Lava Seafood is a young company that specializes in exporting seafood and has grown rapidly. The company now employs ten people, but a third of them have received a degree in food science with the involvement of Matís. In the near future, an employee will be added to the Lava Seafood staff, who received important training from one of Matís' predecessors, the Fisheries Research Institute. Lava Seafood started operating seafood exports to Nigeria in 2014.

The development work is the key

Kristmann Pálmason, CEO of Lava Seafood, witnessed the importance and significance of research and development work in connection with Iceland's business interests when the company took its first steps abroad. It is well known that falling oil prices have had a major impact on the purchasing power of the population in countries such as Nigeria. In addition, the Nigerian government is taking action to increase the self-sufficiency of Nigerians in food production. These included measures to restrict the import of food such as dried seafood from Iceland. Exchange rates, access to currencies and tariffs had an effect, the volume and value of exports from here decreased. This had an effect both economically and imaginatively, as lower sales of special marine products reduced Icelanders' utilization of marine catch.

According to Kristmann, the fact is that although people want to enter a perfect market with products and services, in most cases there are big problems, that nowhere can you really talk about a perfect market. In many places, there are portals that only public bodies can open.

Knowledge building

Therefore, a business delegation went to Nigeria last year, led by Lilja Alfreðsdóttir, the then Minister of Foreign Affairs, but even though the delegation entered through a previously closed portal, the conversation with the hosts was limited.

"The conversation with the Nigerian government, the Minister of Finance of Nigeria, first started when the educational and research collaboration on the utilization of marine resources, which Matís and the United Nations University Fisheries School (UNU-FTP) have established, came into play. The Nigerian Minister of Finance opened the door for Icelandic officials at the Directorate of Customs of Nigeria in direct continuation of the discussion on research and development cooperation, "says Kristmann, adding that Matís and UNU-FTP have taken great strides in developing Icelandic research on marine products. It is very important to take advantage of what has been achieved and build knowledge of what we have in hand in the first place, and on the other hand what we are actually selling into all of our fish markets, especially in terms of health, protein and reliability. . It is important to link the innovation to well-known markets such as Nigeria as well as to look for new markets.

Talented people to the country

As Fiskifréttir has recently reported, the multinational network of the scientific community in Matís has attracted talented people to the country who the Icelandic fisheries sector can utilize in a targeted manner with regard to knowledge of and access to new markets. The World Seafood Congress, organized by Matís with the support of financial and fisheries companies, is worth mentioning. The conference was an important contribution to the international debate, according to Kristmann. The conference was attended by scholars, ministers and company executives in connection with the fishing industry of the future.

Kristmann says that Icelandic companies should strive to utilize the knowledge and human resources that Matís has built up through mutual cooperation. That's what Lava Seafood did; used the Matís scientific community to prepare a variety of projects abroad. The company does business with companies in over 30 countries and is based on the belief that knowledge can be sold everywhere.

"Matís can be called a common denominator for the Icelandic knowledge that is so sought after when it comes to value creation from marine resources," says Kristmann.

This article first appears in Fish news December 18 sl. 

Matís staff wishes its customers and all Icelanders a Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year.

Recently, Jón Atli Benediktsson, Rector of the University of Iceland, and Sveinn Margeirsson, CEO of Matís, wrote an article that was published in Fréttablaðið on 30 November.

There is a good and successful collaboration between Matís and the University of Iceland. An agreement is in force on teaching and research, and it covers, among other things, the sharing of resources and infrastructure, co-operation on research and the development of human resources with the aim of being at the forefront of key areas of Icelandic society.

The agreement between the University of Iceland and Matís laid the foundation for the strengthening of theoretical and practical education in the field of food research and food safety, as well as co-operation in other fields of teaching and research. A total of 64 master's and 23 doctoral projects have been carried out at Matís since 2007, most of them with the University of Iceland.

Sustainable food production is the key to fulfillment global goals of the United Nations. The collaboration between Matís and the University of Iceland also includes a collaboration with the United Nations University's Fisheries School, which operates in Iceland and has supported five doctoral students to complete their studies at the Faculty of Food and Nutrition at the University of Iceland in collaboration with Matís. Iceland is one of the leading fisheries nations in the world and certainly has a lot to contribute to increased food security and welfare in developing countries.

With valuable experience in the bag and an unwavering belief in the value of science for development, Matís and the University of Iceland aim for continued strong collaboration in the coming years. Among the priorities of this co-operation will be the necessary infrastructure development in the field of food and research aimed at the sustainable utilization of life resources on land and at sea.

The article can be read in its entirety here.

Contact

Birgir Örn Smárason

Research Group Leader

birgir@matis.is

With the support of Snæfellsnessbær, Grundafjarðarbær and Stykkishólmsbær, Matís has worked to promote the utilization of raw materials from the ecosystem of Breiðafjörður through increased sustainable value creation, especially with regard to the need for nutrients for feeding fish. Efforts have been made to create environmentally friendly value-creating innovation within the bioeconomy with the above-mentioned support, which has been important for the development work in which Matís participates. 

Since 2014, Matís has worked with Snæfellsnesbær, Grundarfjarðarbær and Stykkishólmsbær to analyze the bioeconomy of Snæfellsnes, with special emphasis on ecological innovation and fish feeding on the one hand, and the impact and share of resources on innovation and discovery. Through the collaboration, Matís' work has been aimed at strengthening the knowledge base of environmentally friendly development and promoting better utilization of raw materials with increased sustainability and value creation as a guiding principle.

The description of the modern age as a time of rapid change does not only apply to the application of information technology or so-called technological revolutions. There has been a great deal of development recently in the development of fish nutrition for centuries on and off the coast of the country, this development is in line with what is customary in aquaculture around the world. Manufacturers' efforts to meet the demands of the consumer market have a direct impact on the procedures and product development of companies. Fish feed has undergone major changes as producers strive to sell their products with the most valuable creativity possible. The composition of feed has changed in terms of the distances to which inputs for the production of feed are transported, just as the mode of transport of products on the market. In the collaboration, the development of fish feeding was therefore extensive.  

The communication between Matís 'representatives, experts and students, with stakeholders in Snæfellsnes was crucial for the work that has been done within Matís since 2014. The work that took place within the above agreement fell into all three professional emphases of Matís' research and innovation division, which is in force. have been from the first half of 2016, i.e. exploration of genetic resources, product development and the safe value chain of food. The co-operation with the three municipalities has, so to speak, affected Matís' operations as a whole.

The science and knowledge community Matís used the basis for collaboration with the three municipalities, among other things, to integrate the knowledge search of young scientists, the will of the municipalities and the role of Matís, which assists its business friends in increased value creation, food security and public health. This includes Birgir Arnar Smárason's current doctoral studies at the University of Iceland and a master's project of two students, on the one hand in the field of ocean environment and resources at the University of the Basque Country and on the other hand in innovation and entrepreneurship at the University of Oslo.

Snæfellsnes is interested in examining the basis for continuing this collaboration.

A report on the project is available on Matís' website: http://www.matis.is/media/matis/utgafa/11-17-Greining-lifhagkerfis-Snaefellsness.pdf

Matís, in collaboration with Íslandsbleikja, the University of Akureyri, Keldur and the Spanish vaccine manufacturer Hipra are working on the development of a specific vaccine for char.

Iceland is the largest producer of char in the world with about four thousand tons of production per year. No drugs other than prophylactic vaccines have been used in charr farming for more than a decade and all chemical use is kept to a minimum. The disease that has caused the most deaths in charr farming in recent years is bubonic plague. Vaccination against the disease, based on a vaccine developed for use in salmon, has not been effective enough to protect charr until it reaches slaughter size. The disease therefore causes extensive losses and loss of income in the industry. 

The participants in the project, which is funded by the AVS Research Fund, have now started the development of a specific vaccine against bluetongue, with the aim of launching a powerful vaccine that can be used in charr farming. The project is led by Íslandsbleikja and the results of the project will be available in the second half of 2019.

Contact

Þóra Valsdóttir

Project Manager

thora.valsdottir@matis.is

The President of Iceland, Guðni Th. Jóhannesson, was visiting Rjómabúið Erpsstaðir this week. Þorgrímur Einar Guðbjartsson and Helga Elínborg Guðmundsdóttir run a thriving farm there, but they, together with their children, have been vigorously innovating in recent years and decades. They are truly the image of the Icelandic entrepreneurial farmer.

The president and his entourage were guided through a new sky show and tasted skyr and a new rhubarb juice with a good reputation. The report exhibition is made in collaboration with Matís and will be opened in late winter.

If you have not already visited Erpsstaðir, then everything is recommended that you visit next time it is open with them 😉

Contact

Birgir Örn Smárason

Research Group Leader

birgir@matis.is

Matís was a participant in the project Aquaculture Innovation Network for northern Periphery and Arctic (AINNPA) funded by the Northern Periphery and Arctic Program (NPA). The project, which was a preliminary project of the partners for the preparation of a larger project, was about connecting small and medium-sized development companies in the NPA area with the aquaculture industry.

Innovation and development of products and services are very important for the sustainable growth of aquaculture. Smaller companies in the aquaculture sector do not always have access to innovation and development companies that can help aquaculture companies grow. The AINNPA project was intended to address this problem by connecting parties and transferring knowledge to the aquaculture industry and opening up new markets for small and medium-sized development companies that have not previously collaborated with the aquaculture industry.

The project's partners, the University of Stirling (UK), the Aquaculture Research Station of the Faroes (Faroe Islands), SINTEF (Norway) and the Indigo Rock Marine Research Station (Ireland) all have extensive experience in research and innovation for aquaculture, each in its own field. The parties met at the first meeting of the project at Matís' headquarters in early 2017 and laid the groundwork for the coming months.

The results of the project were submitted to the NPA Fund in September. They are intended to be the basis for continued co-operation between the parties.

In order to be able to take out and evaluate the diet of the people, we need data. They are not available, at least not recent data. We also need a database where Icelanders' consumption of food is linked to the content of these foods. Without this, we do not know where we stand when it comes to nutrients, contaminants or additives! 

This is primarily due to the fact that the Office of the Medical Director of Health, Matvælastofnun, Matís and the Laboratory of Nutrition at the University of Iceland and Landspítali have expressed a strong will to start preparing and conducting a new national survey of the Icelandic diet. At the same time, the government was challenged to secure funding for this important part, both for the implementation of the survey and for the development of infrastructure, for example a database on the chemical content of food, which is necessary for the implementation of such a survey.
The declaration of intent in its entirety.