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Recently, an article was published about the Fagur fisk episodes that were shown on RUV with very few good accolades.

The news is published on Ny Nordisk Mat's website and reads as follows:

ICELAND: On Icelandic TV you can now every Sunday at 19.35 on RUV, channel 1, see "Beautiful Fish" - "Fagur Fiskur" in Icelandic - which should inspire to eat Iceland's many fish in just as many ways. The idea started with Matís with a scientific thesis, where Gunnþórunn Einarsdóttir concluded that young people lack both knowledge and encouragement to eat fish. Together with product designer Brynhildur Pálsdóttir and SAGA Film, it has now become a series of TV shows where the fish plays the main role. See website here: www.fagurfiskur.is/.
More on: www.nynordiskmad.org

More about Beautiful fish on Facebook, á www.fagurfiskur.is and by Gunnþórunn Einarsdóttir, Matís employee and founder of Fagur fisk, gunnthorunn.einarsdottir@matis.is.

Brimberg ehf. in Seyðisfjörður is leading a new project, in collaboration with Gullberg, Síldarvinnslan and Matís ohf., which aims to produce fish sauce

Work on the project began in October in Seyðisfjörður with the participation of Matís employees and a Japanese expert from Matís' Japanese partner, the Food Production Research Center on Hokkaido Island in Japan. The Japanese expert showed Icelanders the right handles at the beginning of the processing of the fish sauce. Ómar Bogason at Brimberg is the project manager in the project. The project is funded by the AVS Research Fund and the East Iceland Growth Agreement.

For further information, please contact Arnljótur Bjarki Bergsson, arnljotur.b.bergsson@matis.is.

Do you want to know, through genetic analysis, "whose dog" he is? Matís performs genetic analyzes on animals, including horses, dogs, fish, etc.

Further information can be found here.

MNÍ Food Day 2010 is now underway and a large number of people have made their way to the Hilton Hotel.

The Icelandic Food and Nutrition Association has awarded prizes for praiseworthy initiatives in the food sector every year since 1993 on MNÍ Food Day.

Right now, Fjöreggið was handed over on MNÍ's Food Day. Ólafur Reykdal, food scientist and employee at Matís, received Fjöreggið 2010 for his participation in research on Icelandic barley for human consumption. He has for years been in charge of research on the nutrient content and properties of barley and has worked on quality requirements as a reference for the use of barley in food production and brewing. This research has supported innovation and entrepreneurship in the cultivation, processing and production of barley products.

Matís sincerely congratulates Ólafur!

The Icelandic Food and Nutrition Association has awarded prizes for praiseworthy initiatives in the food sector every year since 1993 on MNÍ Food Day.

The food is on the human side - Fjöregg MNÍ 2010

Icelandic Food and Nutrition Association (www.mni.is) has awarded an award for a commendable initiative in the food sector annually since 1993 on MNÍ Food Day. The prize is an Icelandic glass artwork that represents Fjöreggið and the prize is awarded with support from the Confederation of Icelandic Industries.

This time MNÍ received a number of suggestions for worthy prize winners and five of them are nominated for Fjöregginn. It is then up to the jury to select the winner from those nominations. The jury consists of Orri Hauksson, CEO of the Confederation of Icelandic Industries, Erla Gerður Sveinsdóttir, MD at Heilsustofnun NLFÍ and Heilsuborg, Jón Gíslason, CEO of Matvælastofnun and Valentína Björnsdóttir, CEO of Móður náttúr ehf.

At the start of the food day, the winner of Fjöreggið will be announced and Orri Hauksson, chairman of the jury, will present the winner with the prize.

The following are nominated for Fjöregg MNÍ 2010:

Fjörostur
Fjörostur from MS came on the market last year, which is an environmentally friendly innovation and a new option in low-fat dairy products. The production is based on a new technology, multi-stage micro-filtration, which makes it possible to utilize whey that is otherwise produced in cheese-making and produce whey protein concentrate from it. It has the properties to give the product a soft and rounded taste, but Fjörostur contains only 9% fat and is the lowest fat bread cheese on the market today. Fjörosturinn takes its name from Fjörmjólk, which is also a low-fat and high-protein product.

Ólafur Reykdal food scientist
Ólafur Reykdal, food scientist and employee at Matís, is nominated for his participation in research on Icelandic barley for human consumption. He has for years been in charge of research on the nutrient content and properties of barley and has worked on quality requirements as a reference for the use of barley in food production and brewing. This research has supported innovation and entrepreneurship in the cultivation, processing and production of barley products. 

Saffron restaurants
The restaurant SAFFRAN opened last year in two places in the capital area. SAFFRAN offers healthy, fresh and exotic food at low prices. Most Icelandic ingredients are used in the cooking and all bread is baked on site. SAFFRAN is an interesting new option in the restaurant and fast food market, which has reached young people and enjoyed popularity since opening.

Lýsi hf.
Fish oil has a long history in the production of liver oil. The company has grown and prospered in recent years on the basis of product and market development and their recent factory is one of the most perfect in the world. Lýsi produces many types of fish oil products, food supplements and nutrients, for demanding customers both domestically and abroad. Fish oil is the largest single manufacturer and seller of dietary supplements in the domestic market.

Matvælaskólinn at Sýn
In recent years, Rannsóknaþjónustan Sýn ehf has developed courses for employees in food companies and canteens. The food school at Sýn has had quality management, quality control and food safety in the forefront, and at the same time emphasis is placed on holding courses to increase variety and healthy meals. Matvælaskólinn has, in collaboration with stakeholders in the business sector, developed new study paths for employees in the food industry and adapted courses to the needs of companies.

On the 19th and 20th of October. A workshop was held in Iceland on fishing, processing, marketing and other issues related to longline fish.

The meeting was held on behalf of Matís, Nofima, the University of Tromsø and Havstovan in the Faroe Islands, and a total of 70 people from seven countries participated in the workshop. The topics were divided into four categories where 4-5 parties gave presentations and after that there was a general discussion among the participants. Topics included quality, traceability, marketing, consumers, the environment, technological solutions, fishing gear research, ship design, raw material handling, fisheries management, etc.

Discussions of the participants revealed that members of the value chain of longline fish in Iceland, the Faroe Islands and Norway have much in common and there is clearly a basis for co-operation between the nations in terms of research and development. In general, the parties agreed that the main advantage of longline fishing was that it provided the possibility of much better product quality than when other fishing gear is used. It was also considered important to emphasize that the environmental impact of longline fishing is much smaller than when fishing with bottom trawls, for example, and therefore the line is often referred to as LIFE-gear (Low Impact Fuel Efficient).

The Icelandic participants drew some attention to the amount of work Norway has put into research and development in the field of fishing gear research and ship design. In fact, the Norwegian line fleet can be divided into two separate categories, i.e. the ocean fleet and the coastal fishing fleet. There are about 50 freezer vessels in the ocean fleet, all of which are technically very perfect, for example some of them pull the line up through a hull that is either located on the side or in the middle of the vessel. These vessels can therefore be in almost any weather and the loss of hooks is much less than when towed in the traditional way. The newest ship in this category is now being delivered, but it is Geir II and it costs around ISK 3.6 billion. The Norwegian coastal fishing fleet, on the other hand, is much more primitive and there is often a great lack of proper raw material handling. One of the main problems with this is that there are minimum prices in force, which means that almost the same price is paid for all fish, no matter what their quality is. It also creates problems that most of the catch of this fishing group is obtained in a relatively limited period. 

In cases where Icelanders take good care of raw material treatment, they are ahead of the Norwegians in these matters. The same applies to the use of any kind of information in all links in the value chain. At the working meeting, the fishing company Eskøy (which is owned by Icelandic parties) came up for discussion, but the company has two boats for longline fishing in Norway. It is considered a success and the company is looked at in terms of raw material quality. 

Like Iceland, the Faroe Islands place great emphasis on the quality of longline fish. There was some discussion about the difference between their fisheries management system and the Icelandic and Norwegian systems. It seems to be the general opinion of the Faroese that their offensive day system is in fact much more environmentally friendly than a quota system.

At the end of this workshop, the participants are aware that Icelanders, Faroese and Norwegians can learn a lot from each other, and it is hoped that following the workshop it will be possible to establish further co-operation in the field of research and development concerning the longline value chain.

The keynote speakers 'speeches are now available on Matís' website:Tuesday 19 October

08:30 - 11:15

Why a workshop on longlining?
Edgar Henriksen, Nofima Market, Norway

The UK seafood market: where does longline-caught fish fit in?
Philip MacMullen, Seafish, UK

What is so good about longline-caught fish?
Terje Kjølsøy, Ålesundfisk AS, Norway

Documentation of quality and environment issues - is that useful?
Kine Mari Karlsen, Nofima Market, Norway

From Seafloor to Consumer- a value chain project for longline fishing.
Bjørn Tore Rotabakk, Nofima Mat, Norway

12:00 - 16:00
What do we need to know to design the next generation longline vessels?
Lasse Rindahl, SINTEF, Norway

Development of new hauling systems.
Roger Larsen, BFE, University of Tromsø, Norway

Challenges in further development of autoline.
Christian H. Engh, Mustad Longline, Norway

Challenges in designing systems for fish handling preserving quality and value through the value chain.
Sveinn Margeirsson, Matís, Iceland

How can IT improve the fleets over all efficiency?
Kolbeinn Gunnarsson, Trackwell, Iceland

Wednesday 20 October
08:30 - 11:00  

Is there a potential for improved earnings in the longline fleet and the value chain by marketing the qualities of longline-caught fish?
Svavar Þór Guðmundsson, Sæmark Seafoods Ltd., Iceland

Optimizing profitability in the longline fleet. Which are the important parameters?
Erla Ósk Pétursdóttir, Vísir hf, Iceland

Longline-caught fish in the Faroese fishing industry.
Páll Gregersen, P / F PRG Export, Faroe Islands

Challenges in developing a longline fishery in Greenland.
Alfred ER Jacobsen, KNAPG, Greenland

12:00 - 14:00
Strength and weaknesses in the Faroese fishing day's system in relation to boat owner's economy.
Johannus M. Olsen, the Faroese longliners organization

Management regimes for fisheries with respect to efficiency and responsible fishing.
Dominic Rihan, Ireland, ICES-FAO Working Group on Fisheries Technology and Fish Behavior.

How do regulations in general and parameter regulations especially affect longlining?
Svein Løkkeborg, Institute of Marine Research, Norway

What are the effects of stimulating longline fisheries with special reference to regional development?
Jahn Petter Johnsen, BFE, University of Tromsø

Further information about the workshop can be obtained from jonas.r.vidarsson@matis.is

Various interesting questions are answered regarding the condition of cod and processing properties. A project has just been completed which examined, among other things, carcasses according to season, the effect of carcasses on fillet utilization and whether the condition of the liver could give an indication of carcasses and processing utilization.

The AVS project Let's take a closer look at the yellow from the tickets in the stomach - a study of factors that affect the value of cod catches has just finished. The aim of the project was to gather more detailed information than has previously been done on the chemical composition, processing properties and value of cod in the value chain, based on accurate traceability. The endpoint of the study was frozen cod fillets and therefore the study does not cover the links related to transport, retail, etc. One of the aims was to increase knowledge of the relationship between the fat content of the liver and the liver index on the one hand and the body mass index on the other. In this way, it would be possible to obtain important information about the condition of cod around Iceland.

The condition of fish is assessed in two ways. On the one hand, the body mass index (ratio of weight to length squared) is calculated, and on the other hand, the liver index (ratio of liver to the weight of the fish). If the fish is in good meat, it is an indication that there is plenty of food and its condition is good. When a fish has enough food, it also builds up a reservoir in the liver; the larger the liver, the better the condition of the fish. But the actual condition of the fish is only good if the percentage of fat in the liver is high.

To date, livers have been weighed in MRI stock surveys and the condition of fish has been assessed on the basis of body and liver coefficients. However, it was not known how good this assessment was on the actual condition of the fish as the percentage of fat in the liver was not known in cod off Iceland. The results of the AVS project showed that there was a positive relationship between hepatic index and liver fat content. However, the relationship was not linear, but the fat content increased rapidly at a low liver factor but less as the liver factor increased. Likewise, the fat content of the liver increased with length and age in both hens and females. However, there was no relationship between fish body and liver fat content.

The body mass index therefore only gives information about the body of the fish, not whether it has accumulated long-term nutrition in the liver. The results of this project indicate that the liver index gives good indications of the condition of the cod. With the results of the project, it would be possible to assess the fat content in livers that have been weighed in the MRI's stock measurement expeditions. Although it does not provide accurate fat measurements, it is possible to take the assessment into account when examining the condition of cod.

The results for the processing properties showed that the fat content of the liver, the weight of the fish or the meat coefficient do not give any decisive evidence of fillet utilization. In the future, the relationship between the ratio of fat in the liver to the liver factor should be better studied and whether and how various factors, such as temperature, affect the relationship.

There is good knowledge about the processing properties of cod in terms of season, fishing area, handling and other conditions during fishing. However, the relationship between sex, sexual maturity, food status and age of fish with processing characteristics is not as well known and therefore emphasis was placed on investigating the importance of these variables on cod processing characteristics in this AVS project.

The results show that gender and age do not have a statistically significant effect on fillet utilization and release. On the other hand, puberty seemed to have some effect on fillet utilization, i.e. immature fish have a somewhat better utilization than sexually mature fish. There was also a difference in the release of fillets between individual fishing trips and this difference could be caused to some extent by puberty. It should be noted, however, that there was a considerable imbalance in the database regarding the distribution of sexual maturity in individual fishing trips, and relatively few samples were of mature fish compared to immature fish. It is therefore necessary to carry out a detailed study of puberty in order to reach a decisive conclusion about its connection with fillet utilization and release.

Chemical composition results showed that there was no statistically significant relationship between iron, selenium, lead, or organic matter (PCB7) concentrations and sex, age, or puberty. There was, however, a statistically significant relationship between the concentration of mercury in cod fillets and age / length. It is known that mercury accumulates in the flesh of fish with age and the results of this study are therefore in line with and based on previous results in this field.

The project has involved a very extensive data collection, where many parties have been involved in sampling and measurements at the various stages of cod processing, as well as age analysis and chemical measurements of both fillets and liver. The project has established a collaboration on sampling and sharing of data between the Directorate of Fisheries, the Marine Research Institute, Matís and the fish processing companies HB Grandi and Guðmundur Runólfsson. This collaboration has enabled us to gather more detailed and better data, thus leading to significant synergies and better utilization of research funding. It is already clear that the project will lead to further collaboration in the future.

Project manager's report: A closer look at the yellow from the target in the stomach - a study of factors that affect the value of cod catches

AVS reference number: R 077-07

Friday, October 22 at 12.00 Shuji Yoshikawa gives a lecture on food fermentation in Verin in Sauðárkrókur.

Matís is currently working on the project "Gagnleg gerjun" in collaboration with Brimberg ehf. fish processing in Seyðisfjörður funded by AVS - Fisheries Research Foundation (www.avs.is) and the East Iceland Growth Agreement.

The project is about the production of fish sauce by fermenting seafood to increase value. In connection with the project in question, Líftæknismiðja Matís in Sauðárkrókur has hosted a good guest this October, Mr. Shuji Yoshikawa is an expert in food fermentation. Mr. Yoshikawa has guided Matís' experts and other project partners in the implementation of knowledge, which is the basis for progress in this field.

On that occasion, the visitor gets a good light to shine at a seminar in Verin Vísindagörður where the utilization of fermentation in food production will be discussed. Soy sauce, which many Icelanders know, as its consumption in this country has increased in recent years, is produced by fermenting soybeans. The main points in the production of soy sauce will be covered
but before that the role of koji in the fermentation of Japanese foods will be explained.

The seminar is open to everyone. More here.

Information is provided by Gísli Svan Einarsson gisli@veridehf.is S; 455-7930

Verið Vísindagarðar, Háeyri 1, Sauðárkrókur. www.veridehf.is