Category: News

Matís will be in charge of courses in internal control and the preparation of a quality manual in food companies from the 17th to the 18th. next October

Internal control - 17.10, at 10:00 - 17:00
Internal control is a systematic method of food companies that aims to ensure the safety, quality and hygiene (wholesomeness) of food. All food companies should have internal controls. Internal controls should be able to show what is being done to ensure that the food produced is safe for consumption. In order to be successful, it is important that all employees take an active part in internal control and have an understanding of its purpose, goals and benefits. 

Preparation of a quality manual - 18.10., At 09:00 - 16:00
A quality manual is one of the conditions that manufacturers must meet in order to obtain a production license for their production. Product and production descriptions, hazard analysis and reactions, sampling plans and housing will be covered.
 
The courses are intended for all those who work in food companies or are interested in such!

The price for each course is ISK 25,000 and will be held in Nýheimar in Höfn in Hornafjörður.

It is pointed out that vocational training funds reimburse the cost of holding courses for individuals and companies up to 75%. See more information about vocational training funds and allocation rules here:

www.starfsafl.is – www.landsmennt.is – www.starfsmennt.is

For further information and registration call 858-5136 and vigfus.th.asbjornsson@matis.is

Free access to information about Icelandic meat. A new meat information website was recently launched at www.kjotbokin.is.

It was Sindri Sigurgeirsson, chairman of the National Association of Sheep Farmers, who formally opened the website when he called Matís' headquarters from Holtavörðuheiði, where he was in a tunnel with other people from Borgfjörður. The webbook was introduced
at an open house by Matís, which is the publisher of the meat book.

Online book replaces the old book The meat book, which is a detailed online book about meat, will initially only contain information about lamb, but other types of meat will follow if the publisher's plans work out. The web magazine is intended to replace the old meat book that was published in 1994. The target group of the book is diverse, but it is certain that the new edition
will come in handy in meat processing, at slaughterhouses, students, farmers and not least meat buyers who want to learn about meat products. Access to the meat book is free and it is not planned to sell access to the web in the future. High-quality photos and varied information The new book includes high-quality photos of the meat, information on meat food and where individual muscles are taken from the carcass, the size and weight of the pieces and all their names. You can print out information sheets for each piece and access to a variety of meat-related ingredients, including protein, fat and carbohydrate content. The numbering system used in foreign marketing of lamb covers all pieces, but it makes communication between meat buyers and sellers easier than before.

Easy to upgrade
According to Óli Þórs Hilmarsson, meat industry master at Matís and one of the authors of the book, it will be easy to add material to the webbook as time goes on. "It will open up various connections through the web in the future. In our neighboring countries, such websites are directly linked to the companies that enter various information about their products, including chemical content and nutritional value, "says Óli Þór.

It is Guðjón Þorkelsson, Óli Þór Hilmarsson and Gunnþórunn Einarsdóttir at Matís who have their way and problems with the making of the book, but the project received support from the Sheep Meat Market Council. The web magazine is actually set up like a traditional book on the Internet, but graphic design was in the hands of Port design, the web was programmed by Einar Birgir Einarsson and photographer Odd Stefán took most of the photographs.

For further information Óli Þór Hilmarsson at Matís.

^{The above article first appeared in Bændablaðið on 15 September.}

Icelandic Food and Nutrition Association (MNÍ) announces MNÍ Food Day on Tuesday 18 October at the Hilton Reykjavík Nordica hotel. Food Day is an annual event that has been held since 1993 and is now being held for the nineteenth time. 

Matís takes a big part in the day, but it should be noted that in addition to the board of directors, many of Matís' employees will give presentations. In addition, Matís' marketing manager is on the food day's preparatory committee. The program of Food Day 2011 can be found here.

MNÍ Food Day 2011 is entitled Health-related foods and target foods. The main content of the day this year is product development, production, research and marketing of health-related foods and targeted foods from Icelandic ingredients. There will be fourteen short presentations that provide insight into the topic. Among other things, Icelandic breakfast cereals, fish oil, protein drinks, fish meat sauces, the use of seaweed in food production, health claims on food and vitamin D supplementation of food will be discussed.

Katrín Júlíusdóttir, Minister of Industry, will chair the conference and chair the meeting Sveinn Margeirsson, CEO of Matís.

At the opening of the conference, Orri Hauksson, CEO of the Confederation of Icelandic Industries, will present Fjöregg MNÍ, an award given for a commendable initiative in the field of food production and human consumption. The grip is designed and built by Gleri in Bergvík and has been donated by the Confederation of Icelandic Industries since 1993. Nominations for Fjöregg MNÍ in 2011 can be found on the MNÍ website, www.mni.is. Further information about the nominations is provided by Borghildur Sigurbergsdóttir, borghildurs (at) gmail.com, mobile 896-1302.

Participation in the conference must be announced on the MNÍ website, www.mni.is, but registration ends at 13:00, Monday 17 October. The general participation fee is ISK 4,500, but students only have to pay ISK 3,000. If registration takes place after October 14, the participation fee will increase by ISK 1,000. Conference materials and light refreshments are included in the price, but the program starts at 12:00 to 18:00 and is published on the MNÍ website, where news of the conference will also be published shortly, as well as a list of those who will present their products and research in this field.

Food Day is open to the public and food and nutrition enthusiasts are encouraged to attend.

For further information, contact Fríða Rún Þórðardóttir, 898-8798, frida@isport.is.

The exhibition FOOD-IN 2011 in the Sports Hall in Akureyri is this coming weekend. Thousands of visitors are expected to the exhibition - a sales exhibition with over forty participants - professional and player competitions in cooking - free admission!

The exhibition FOOD-IN will be held in Akureyri for the fifth time this coming weekend. The exhibition has been held every two years and was last held in 2009. The number of visitors was 12-14 thousand and another one is expected this year. There are more booths than at the last show and the exhibition area is even bigger. As before, admission is free and it is emphasized that this is a sales exhibition, so it is possible to make a good purchase from exhibitors. Eiríkur Björn Björgvinsson, Mayor of Akureyri, will formally open the exhibition, which will be open at 11-17 on Saturday and Sunday.

Great variety
It is safe to say that MATUR-INN 2011 is a highlight in Nordic food culture. The exhibition is held by the company Mat úr Eyjafjörður in good collaboration with Þingeyska matarbúrið and Matarkistuna Skagafjörður. Behind these companies are food producers large and small, restaurants, tourism companies, shops and service companies - all parties that have in common that food is involved in their work. About forty people will take part in the exhibition FOOD-IN 2011 and there will be a great variety. 

Fun cooking competitions and autumn market
There will be a competition in cooking in the kitchen area of the exhibition. For example, nationally known individuals will compete in salmon dishes, chefs will compete for the best mackerel dish, bakers will compete in desserts and finally restaurants will compete in flatbread making.

The exhibition will feature exhibition stands for companies and food culture associations, a marketplace where, for example, it will be possible to buy fresh autumn crops and jams of various kinds.

In parallel with the exhibition, there will be a furniture exhibition in the lobby of the Sports Hall, and on Saturday a giant barbecue will be lit outside, where a 24-hour barbecue of beef carcass will begin. It will then be ready on Sunday and will give guests the opportunity to taste the military names.

On Sunday, the company's entrepreneur award Matar from Eyjafjörður will also be presented, but they have been a regular part of the company's exhibitions so far.

On the occasion of the exhibition, eight restaurants in Akureyri will have a special menu this week, where they will each export local ingredients in their own way. It can be said that food and food adventures will be the theme of Eyjafjörður and Norðurland all this week and will culminate this weekend.

Agenda

Saturday, October 1
at 11 - The exhibition opens
at 11:30 - Eiríkur Björn Björgvinsson, Mayor of Akureyri, formally opens the exhibition
at 13-14 - Chefs compete for the best mackerel dish
at 15 - Well-known individuals compete in salmon cooking
at 17 - The exhibition closes

Sunday, October 2
11 am - The exhibition opens
at 13 - Bakers compete in dessert making
at 14 - The flatbread competition of the restaurants
at 15 - Auction of merchandise from exhibitors - proceeds go to the Heroes - a family of chronically ill children in the North
at 15:30 - The Entrepreneurship Award of the company Matar úr héraði awarded.
at 17 - The exhibition closesParticipants in FOOD-IN 2011
In booths: 

• Bautinn, Akureyri
• Directly from the farm - producers
• Bread making ISK Jónsson, Akureyri
• Darri - Eyjabiti, Grenivík
• Ektafiskur, Hauganesi
• Greifinn, Akureyri
• The new coffee roaster, Akureyri
• Kexsmiðjan Akureyri
• Kjarnafæði, Akureyri
• Kung Fu, Akureyri
• Laufabrauðssetrið, Akureyri
• Lostæti, Akureyri
• Matarkistan Skagafjjörður, producers and companies in Skagafjörður
• Matís, Akureyri
• MS Akureyri
• Norðlenska, Akureyri
• Purity Herbs, Akureyri
• Strikið, Akureyri
• Urtasmiðjan, Svalbarðsströnd
• The Þingeyjar dining table, producers and companies in Þingeyjarsýsla

In the wine promotion area:

• Brugghúsið Gæðingur, Skagafjörður
• Bruggsmiðjan, Árskógssandur

In the marketplace:

• Júlíus Júlíusson, Dalvík
• Ósk Sigríður Jónsdóttir, Svarfaðardalur
• Reykir II, Fnjóskadalur
• Holt og heiðar ehf., Hallormsstaður

 Furniture exhibition in the lobby:

• The Puff pastry Center
• Mimosa

Further information is provided by Jóhann Ólafur s. 899-9865

Make a short film with your phone or other video camera or create a photo album. You can win a trip to Washington, DC.

You can, among other things: Help prepare food for 30,000 students in schools in Washington, work with skilled instructors, increase your skills as a chef, cook at one of the Nordic embassies in Washington and get food prepared at one of the better Washington City Restaurant.

If you are between 18 and 24 years old and can travel between 21-28. October, you could win all this. More information at www.nordicinnovation.org/is/verkefni/kokkakeppni-buou-til-stuttmynd/

To participate
Make a short film with your phone or other video camera or create a photo album. You should cook a tasty meal from Nordic ingredients, which would be easy to make in school kitchens in the United States. Then it must be possible to access the raw materials easily in the United States. The dish should be healthy, tasty and easy for young people to cook. You should show us the recipe and introduce yourself as you tell us why you should be one of the winners of a trip to Washington.

Applications must be in English or one of the Scandinavian languages
The videos and photographs will be published on the Nordic Innovation Center's website. The jury will evaluate all the applications and choose the five best. The jury will not only focus on the recipe but on the candidates and how they present healthy Nordic food.

Applications must be received by the end of October 3, 2011.

For more information on the competition and applications, contact Elisabeth Smith (e.smith@nordicinnovation.org) at the Nordic Innovation Center.

Pollution of heavy metals and other toxins in the sea around the country is generally well below international standards, as stated in Matís' new report on changes in the marine environment around the country (here)

The concentration of cadmium in Icelandic mussels, however, is higher than is generally the case in mussels from the waters of Europe and America.

Since 1989, an annual monitoring project of pollutants in the marine environment of Iceland has been underway. The project is funded by the Ministry of the Environment, the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture and Matís ohf. The Environment Agency is the administrator of the project.

Various pollutants in the ocean can enter marine organisms or organisms that feed on seafood. In many cases, this pollution is man-made and there is growing concern about this development. Pollutants are transported by air and sea currents from mainland Europe and America as well as pollution from Iceland. It is therefore important to monitor the amount of pollutants in Iceland, both in the environment and in the organisms that live in the country. It is also important to be able to compare the state of the marine life around Iceland with the situation in other countries, not least because of the importance of marine products to the nation.

In the Matís report (report 24-11 on the Matís website) the results of the monitoring project for the years 2009 and 2010 are published. trans-nonachlor, toxaphen, DDT and PBDE. The aim of the monitoring project is to identify changes that may occur in the concentration of trace elements in the marine environment around the country during a certain period and between different ocean and coastal areas. Among other things, the research is important for the sale of Icelandic seafood in both domestic and foreign markets, where it can be demonstrated with scientific data that Icelandic fish is caught in an unpolluted environment.

The report states that the concentration of heavy metals such as mercury is very low. However, the concentration of cadmium has sometimes been higher in the marine environment in Iceland than in more southerly areas. However, the amount of cadmium is low in the organisms studied, for example in the range of 0.1-1 mg / kg in mussels. The high concentration of cadmium in Iceland is regional and is considered to have natural causes as there is no evidence of man-made cadmium pollution. The results show changes in the pattern of chlorine organic matter in mussels collected near Hvalstöðin in Hvalfjörður in September 2009, there were no visible changes in the concentration of these substances at the mussel collection site at Hvammsvík in Hvalfjörður or at any other collection site around the country studied in 2009. Important is monitoring these changes in the pattern of concentration of chlorinated organic substances in mussels in the monitoring project in the coming years to see if they are still present. A detailed statistical analysis of the data is in progress, i.e. Scientific methods can be used to estimate the increase or decrease of pollutants in the marine environment in Iceland.

For further information Helga Gunnlaugsdóttir at Matís.

Matís participates in the Fisheries Exhibition in Kópavogur 22.-24. sept. nk. At Matís booth, no. C50, there will be a lot going on, such as the introduction of skyr with bioactive kelp as one of the ingredients and thus all the antioxidant properties that kelp contains, tasty hot smoked mackerel and delicious lobster soup.

Matís' presentation program is as follows:

• Thursday 22 September at 16: 30-17: 30: Hot smoked mackerel
• Friday 23 September at 16: 00-17: 30: Lobster soup from Höfn
• Saturday 24 September at 13: 00-15: 00: Seaweed skins from organic milk and kelp from Breiðafjörður

Do not miss this!

It is worth mentioning that the sea urchin is on its way to the Ecotrophelia Europe finals, as the most promising and eco-friendly innovation idea in the food sector in 2011?

Further information is provided by Matís' marketing manager, Steinar B. Aðalbjörnsson, 858-5111.

Will a new Icelandic skyrocketing product win an award at Ecotrophelia Europe, as the most promising and eco-friendly innovation idea in the food sector in 2011?

In collaboration with Matís, Nýsköpunarmiðstöð Íslands and other parties, Jón Trausti Kárason, Kjartan Trauner, Jökull Vilhjálmsson and Andri Freyr Þórðarson have developed a product that won the Icelandic Ecotrophelia competition and they are therefore on their way to the big competition which takes place in Cologne 9th and 10 October next.

The product in question is skyr, which contains kelp of the type Marínkjarn from Breiðafjörður, but the kelp was the starting point in the conceptual work of the product development.

In addition to Marínkjarnan, the product contains organic milk from BioBú, Icelandic blueberries, organic flower honey and furthermore it contains no added sugar or additives!

We all know about the benefits of skyr consumption. With the raw materials that are now added to the skyr, the product acquires a completely new loyalty image. The antioxidant properties of blueberries are well known and kelp also contains lots of vitamins and minerals as well as a wide range of antioxidants. The organic flower honey gives the product such a moderately sweet taste.

The sky will be introduced and people can taste it at the Fisheries Exhibition in Kópavogur on Saturday 24 September, at 13-15.

Do not miss this opportunity!

For further information, contact Jón Trausti Kárason, tel. 663-7904 or jon.trausti@matis.is, Guðjón Þorkelsson or Steinar B. Aðalbjörnsson.

Matís manages the European project EcoFishMan, which aims to develop new methodologies that will be useful in reforming the European Union's fisheries management system.

The project is interdisciplinary and uses information on the ecological, social, economic and managerial aspects of fisheries management, but the aim of the project is to enable people to assess and respond to the aforementioned aspects in the implementation of fisheries management. Great emphasis is placed on collaboration with stakeholders at all stages of the project, and as part of that process, participants in the project met with stakeholders from fisheries, processing, research institutes, consumer organizations and environmental organizations across Europe on 8 September. The meeting took place in Copenhagen and the project was presented to the stakeholders and a contribution from them was sought for further work. EcoFishMan participants gave a talk to explain the various aspects of the project and then there was a discussion about the talk. In EcoFisMan, four different fishing systems will be used as case studies in the development of the system, ie. Icelandic demersal fisheries, Portuguese bottom trawling for crustaceans, demersal trawling in the North Sea and demersal trawling in the Mediterranean. 

Further information about the project can be found on Matís' website (EcoFishMan) and on the project's website, EU_EcoFishMan.

The summer of 2011 was the third summer in which free hand fishing with restrictions on the total amount, so-called coastal fishing, was allowed. The pot contained 8,500 tons and a total of 685 boats took part in the fishing.

The quality of coastal fishing catches has been somewhat discussed in recent months, and therefore the Ministry of Fisheries and Agriculture requested from Matís, Matvælastofnun and the Directorate of Fisheries that an assessment be made of the quality of coastal fishing catches. Various documents were collected during the implementation of the audit, including:

• Measurements of catch temperature when landing across the country, a total of about 2,500 measurements.
• Measurements of the fish markets at the temperature of the catch this summer, a total of about 10,000 measurements.
• Field surveys, i.e. 405 coastal fishing boats were boarded to investigate various issues related to the handling of catches.
• Interviews with the parties that handle the catch of coastal fishing boats the most, ie. buyers, sellers, fish markets, gutting services, carriers, fish processors, etc. a total of about 30 people.
• Visits to fish markets around the country to check procedures, in addition to discussions with representatives of fish markets.

The results of the survey show that inshore fish are of very different quality. Coastal fishing boats fish during the hottest season when the fish are in a bad state due to natural causes, they often stay close to land where the fish are small, there are more worms and the color of the red is darker (so-called kelp); they usually land uncut catches and the size distribution is large. Access to ice is limited in some ports, gutting services are generally no longer available and the transport of ungutted catch between parts of the country at this time of year can be detrimental to the raw material if the catch treatment has not been satisfactory. It is therefore a problem for the coastal fishing fleet to ensure the quality of the catch and it is especially important that the catch treatment is exemplary.

The survey reviews the issues that most affect the quality of the catch, examines how the coastal fishing catch came out this summer regarding those issues in comparison with other day-trippers and finally puts forward proposals on how to promote improvements.

The most influential factor in the quality of inshore fishing is cooling. In general, it can be said that the coastal fishing fleet performs well in comparison with the traditional day-trip boats in terms of cooling, and it is not possible to distinguish a significant difference between these fishing groups. The results of the audit also indicate that the cooling of coastal fishing catches has improved significantly from the previous year. It should be noted, however, that there is a need to further improve cooling, both for coastal fishing boats and other day-trip boats, in order to meet the requirements set out in regulations, ie. that the catch temperature is below 4 ° C within 6 hours. after fishing.

Bleeding facilities are limited on board inshore fishing boats, ie. the catch is usually bled into ice or sludge in the tanks in which it lands. However, as hand-held fish are usually very active when they are hauled on board, blood emptying is better than otherwise, and buyers are usually satisfied with the bleeding of the catch. Representatives of the fish markets say that they have never received a complaint about poor bleeding and therefore it can be concluded that bleeding is not a significant problem with the coastal fishing fleet.

Classification and gutting are also factors that affect the quality of coastal fishing catches. It is important that fish markets and their customers find acceptable ways to ensure that buyers are allowed to deliver the size of fish they think they are buying, but it has been widely reported this summer that buyers have been dissatisfied with the size classification. However, this is a problem that is particularly related to distance selling, as it can be difficult to provide information on the classification of catches that have not yet been landed. Cutting of day-trippers' catches has also been a problem this summer, and it is recommended that the authorities consider changes to the regulations on gutting before the start of the next coastal fishing season.

With regard to other factors that affect the quality of coastal fishing catches, it is most natural that market laws should prevail, ie. that price and quality go hand in hand, but in order for that to happen, it is necessary to increase the visibility of quality factors in the fish markets and increase promotion. The arrangement of coastal fishing, ie. Olympic fishing, can contribute to the pursuit of lower quality catches and therefore it is important to promote education for fishermen, as well as others in the value chain. Efforts were made in education, measurements and monitoring of day rowing boats in the summer of 2011 and it is clear that this has had some success. It is therefore important that the government ensures that this path is continued next year.

We're on the right track, but it's better if it's enough!

A report on the quality of inshore fishing catches in 2011 can be accessed here.

Educational website for small boat sailors: www.alltummat.is/fiskur/smabatar/

For further information Jónas R. Viðarsson at Matís.