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Katrín Ásta Stefánsdóttir, an employee of the Processing and Development Department of IFL's Research Division, intends to pursue a master's degree in food science. This would not be newsworthy unless Katrín does not go the shortest way to her goal, but the Earth ends.

Catherine started working at IFL in 2004, after graduating with a BS in Food Science from the University of Iceland. In fact, it can be said that she had one foot on IFL some time before because she worked on part of a large project in food engineering II at IFL under the guidance of IFL experts.

Katrín has previously gone astray in her career choices, for example in 2003 she was hired to work as a researcher in food chemistry at the Vysoká Škola Chemicko-Technologická (VSCHT, Institute of Chemical Technology), Prague, which she says was very informative and fun experience.

Katrín's interest in pursuing postgraduate studies in food science in Australia can be traced to the fact that in 2005 she went on a world trip, including a visit to Australia, and reportedly liked the country and the nation. Does not spoil so that  Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, where Katrín intends to study, offers exciting studies in her field of interest, processing and innovation of food from seafood. 

Today is Katrín's last day at IFL (at least for now) and she is wished good luck in play and work in foreign lands.

Icelanders are among the largest fish-consuming nations in the world and it is often linked to the longevity and good health of the nation in general, but now there are some glimmers in the air in that respect, as fish consumption, especially young people, has declined significantly in recent years.

At a meeting at IFL today, ways to stay afloat were discussed, preferably to increase fish consumption, especially for younger people, as it is the people who will inherit the land and also the buyers in the coming decades. According to the National Food Council's national survey of the diet of adult Icelanders, fish consumption has fallen sharply in a few years or by at least 30% and most among young people (Laufey Steingrímsdóttir et al. 2003) and this causes many concerns, both health authorities and producers and sellers of seafood.

Declining fish consumption, especially among younger people, is partly due to a change in consumption patterns in general, with an increased supply of various meat products and ready-made dishes such as chicken and pork, pizzas and pasta dishes. Surveys also show that eating habits and family habits have changed significantly in recent decades and this has an effect on consumption habits.

At the meeting held at IFL this morning, Icelandic was introduced project, which aims to promote the consumption of seafood, especially with young people in mind. The purpose of the project, funded by the ACP Fund, is to promote health and improve the image of marine products.

Up to now, work has been done to establish focus groups with the participation of young people, and this has been done in collaboration between IFL and the H.Í. There have also been discussions with fish sellers and restaurants and draft questions for a consumer survey that will take place in the coming months. 

Taste is an e-d that is earned and therefore it is important that children have access to good ingredients from the beginning. With the introduction of canteens in pre-schools and primary schools, it is likely that children will eat most fish meals in such places, and therefore it is desirable that the quality is maintained. 

Access to fresh fish is also different, for example in the case of Emilía Martinsdóttir, who manages the project on behalf of IFL, that about half of all fish shops in the capital area are in the central and western part of Reykjavík and in Seltjarnarnes. On the other hand, there are less than 10% fish shops for the whole of Grafarvogur, Grafarholt and Árbær, where a lot of children and teenagers live. Admittedly, this does not tell the whole story as fish (usually frozen) is sold in most discount stores.

Participants in the project are the Social Sciences Institute H.Í., the Laboratory of Nutrition at LSH and SH-services, as well as IFL. 

The prestigious weekly The Economist publishes in the latest issue. There are two articles on omega-3 fatty acids, one of which discusses a study conducted in the UK on the effects of omega-3 fatty acids on pregnant women on their children's development. In short, the study seems to show once again that the positive aspects of fish consumption are many times greater than the negative ones.   

The study, which The Economist covers, lasted 15 years and included 14,000 women and their children. The results of the study, called the Avon study, were presented at a recent scientific conference in London. Numerous studies on the effects of omega-3 fatty acids have been conducted in recent decades, and many articles have been published in reputable scientific journals on their beneficial effects, including for the heart and brain. Articles on this subject in a magazine as widely read as The Economist can be expected to have a wider impact on people's opinions than many others.

According to the author of The Economist, the results of the Avon study should be of particular interest to the US authorities, who have warned against consuming fish by pregnant women, partly because of fears about the harmful effects of certain types of mercury. Dr. Joseph Hibbeln from the National Institutes of Health in the USA says, however, that the study unequivocally shows that the benefits of fish consumption are multiplied by the dangers that can arise from mercury in fish.

Although the author of The Economist points out that one should be careful not to draw too broad conclusions from the results of the Avon study so far, but is clearly convinced of the merits of omega-3.

For those who still doubt the health of the fish, it can be pointed out that research shows that the amount of undesirable substances found in fish from Icelandic waters is far below the reference limit.

Article The Economist

It is now empty to look at the library which is housed in the Fisheries House. Major changes have taken place there since the middle of last year, and at present most of the museum's publications are packed in boxes.

One of the best kept secrets in the Fisheries House, Skúlagata 4, is The Fisheries Library which is housed on the third floor. The museum is the property of the Marine Research Institute and IFL and is a specialist museum in the field of oceanography and fisheries as well as food science, with a special emphasis on fish. Many researchers and students have taken advantage of the museum in recent years and the museum is also open to the public, although books are not available for loan.

The changes include the fact that part of the museum's premises were taken over for operations United Nations University School of Fisheries, which has been operated at Sjávarútvegshúsið since the school's establishment in 1998. The number of students at the school has increased steadily since its establishment and it was therefore considered necessary to add the facilities that the school's students have had at their disposal.

According to Eiríkur Einarsson, a librarian, it is time consuming to pack an entire library together and put it back together, but the aim is for the library's work to return to normal at the beginning of March next year.

IFL has received a press release from Denmark advertising for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to participate in European network projects of companies that produce functional food. 

The project covers companies in about 20 European countries and aims, among other things, to share knowledge and innovations in this field. The press release states that more than 100 companies have already announced their participation, but that there is room for about 20 more.

Read the press release

On Thursday 5 January, a large meeting was held in Verin, the new Hólar School Development Center, located at Háeyri 1 by the harbor in Sauðárkrókur. The purpose of the meeting was to present a 6 million ISK grant that the Ministries of Fisheries and Industry have provided to support research in the field of aquaculture, seafood processing and food processing in Sauðárkrókur and at Hólaskóli.

In a report in Morgunblaðin last Saturday, Einar Guðfinnsson, the Minister of Fisheries, is quoted as saying that "the future is bright in Skagafjörður and the Development Center will certainly produce significant research and discoveries for the benefit of the Icelandic fishing industry."

IFL has for a long time operated four branches in the countryside and has therefore long focused on strengthening its research in the countryside. IFL has recently placed increased emphasis on strengthening co-operation with higher education institutions anywhere in the country.

A co-operation agreement is in force between IFL and Hólar University for research, and an IFL employee is part-time teaching at the school. It is clear that the financial support of the ministries will significantly support the development of IFL in Skagafjörður. In the news Mbl. says that it is planned to strengthen the collaboration even further with a special collaboration agreement on research and development in the field of aquaculture, natural sciences and food processing, where it is expected that the University of Iceland and the University of Akureyri will be parties to this agreement. Seafood.  

Here are some slides that the speakers at the meeting supported, but the agenda of the meeting was as follows:

Address - Einar K. Guðfinnsson, Minister of Fisheries

2.  AVS Research Fund - Friðrik Friðriksson

3.  IFL in the North - Sjöfn Sigurgísladóttir Rf

4. Co-operation between FISK hf. at schools and research institutes - Jón Eðvald Friðriksson, managing director

5.  Aquaculture and research at Hólar University - Helgi Thorarensen, Hólar School

6.  Feed and fire - Rannveig Björnsdóttir IFL and the University of Akureyri

7.  Protein from seafood and water reuse in aquaculture - Ragnar Jóhannsson, IFL and Hólaskóli

8. Cooperation and development in Sauðárkrókur, Skúli Skúlason - Rector of Hólar University

The Nordic Innovation Center publishes the Innovate newsletter in English and in the latest issue. of the year 2005 can be found interviews with Sjöfn Sigurgísladóttir CEO and Margrét Geirsdóttir, food scientist at IFL. The topic of discussion is the possibilities inherent in the processing of high-quality fish proteins.

Role The Nordic Innovation Center (Nordisk InnovationsCenter) is, among other things, "working to make the Nordic countries an active internal market without borders where nothing prevents the free transfer of skills, ideas, capital, people or products," as stated in the introduction on the organization's website.

The institute is based in Oslo and employs people from all the Nordic countries. The agency publishes reports and newsletters, including Innovate, as stated above.

The interview with Sjöfn is entitled One fish, two fish (p. 10) and the title of the interview with Margrét is Something fishy (p. 9).

Lesa Innovate

Genetically modified foods have been the subject of considerable debate in recent years, and not everyone agrees on their effects. There has been a debate of two kinds, on the one hand about whether food can have a detrimental effect on human health and, on the other hand, what effect the cultivation of genetically modified crops has on the environment and the ecosystem as a whole. This debate has also reached the aquaculture industry, where some are concerned about the potential impact of farmed fish on wild stocks.

Recently, a multinational European project was launched with the aim of gathering information on the potential genetic effects of aquaculture. This information will then be disseminated to stakeholders, the government and the public.

The project is called  Genimpact  but its formal name is Evaluation of genetic impact of aquaculture activities on native populations - A European network and it's dr. Terje Svåsand from the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research leading the project. Among those who are members of the project is Guðrún Marteinsdóttir, professor of fisheries at the Institute of Biology at the University of Iceland.

Dr. Þorleifur Ágústson, fish physiologist at IFL, will take part in this project and he will take part in projects 1 and 2, which are on the one hand the effect of aquaculture on the fish genome and on the other hand the development of measurement technology to assess genetic contamination in nature.

A joint presentation meeting between IFL, Hólar University and Fisk Seafood on the development of research and development activities at the Verin Development Center in Sauðárkrókur will be held next Thursday 5 January at 16: 00-18: 00 in Verin, research and teaching building at Hólar University in Sauðárkrókur.

In recent years, IFL has placed great emphasis on strengthening its research in rural areas. IFL has thus had a growing collaboration on research with FISK Seafood in Skagafjörður and Hólar University on the processing of marine catch, food processing and aquaculture. Hólaskóli and FISK Seafood have in recent years formed a close connection between the strengthening of knowledge in aquaculture and fish biology with the introduction of beautiful housing for such activities in Sauðárkrókur.

It is now planned to further strengthen this co-operation through a special co-operation agreement on research and development in the field of aquaculture, natural sciences and food processing. In addition to IFL, Hólar University and Fisk Seafood, it is expected that the University of Iceland and the University of Akureyri will be parties to this agreement, as well as other partners. The purpose of the agreement is to place special emphasis on the development, operation and utilization of the Hólar School Development Center, which is located at Háeyri 1 by the harbor in Sauðárkrókur.  

The collaboration will be in the form of defined projects and will be attended by specialists and postgraduate students. Both the Minister of Fisheries and Industry have decided to strengthen the collaboration with a special financial contribution to the Fisheries Research Institute amounting to 6 m.kr. in a year. The funds will be used to strengthen IFL's research in Sauðárkrókur. The collaboration and this new agreement will be part of strengthening the operation and development of research and teaching at the Department of Aquaculture and Fish Biology at Hólar University. The new facility creates opportunities for even further development of the co-operation between the parties identified in the furnace. It is in their common interest to share the facility to strengthen their specific activities and thus contribute, among other things, to increased knowledge activities in the countryside. Through the collaboration, the Fisheries Research Institute strengthens its facilities and opportunities for aquaculture and food research and research on the processing of marine products.

Increased knowledge is a key factor in ensuring the development and profitability of the fisheries and aquaculture industry in Iceland. The successful development of this industry is obviously important to the country's settlements. The AVS Research Fund, which operates under the auspices of the Ministry of Fisheries, supports it by providing grants for projects that address all aspects of fisheries and aquaculture. The AVS Research Fund's grants are for applied research and are intended for individuals, companies, research, development and university institutions.

Agenda of the meeting:

Address - Einar K. Guðfinnsson, Minister of Fisheries

2. AVS Research Fund - Friðrik Friðriksson

IFL in the North - Sjöfn Sigurgísladóttir IFL

4. Co-operation between FISK hf. at schools and research institutes - Jón Eðvald Friðriksson, managing director

5. Aquaculture and research at Hólaskóli - Helgi Thorarensen, Hólaskóli

Feed and fire - Rannveig Björnsdóttir IFL and the University of Akureyri

7. Protein from seafood and water recycling in aquaculture - Ragnar Jóhannsson, IFL and Hólaskóli

8. Cooperation and development in Sauðárkrókur, Skúli Skúlason - Hólaskóli

Skúli Skúlason will chair the meeting

In business, time is often valuable and especially if you are handling a delicate product with a short shelf life, such as fresh fish. In an interesting project that has been worked on at IFL, in collaboration with Danmarks Fødevarforsikring, work was done to significantly shorten the time that elapses until the results of microbiological measurements of marine products are available.

This is said on website Of the ACP Fund. A new technology called "Real-Time PCR" offers a much shorter response time than previously possible, in addition to the fact that with "RT-PCR" a similar method is being applied to all types of bacteria and therefore there is great potential for automatic generation. diagnostic equipment.

In 2005, the project called Rapid microbial measurements and is Eyjólfur Reynisson its project manager. The project is funded by the AVS, Norfa and Leonardo da Vinci funds, as well as IFL. 

It is worth mentioning that an article by Eyjólf and his colleagues was recently published in the scientific journal Journal of Microbiological Methods.  Read the article

As mentioned earlier, the project was funded by IFL, AVS, Norfa, the Leonardo project, Danish Agri Business, the EU project Food-PCR 2, MedVetNet and the CampyFood project of the Nordic Innovation Fund.