Due to the coverage of a report that Matís recently prepared for the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, and which has been published on online and news media in recent days, Matís wants to make it clear that the report does not take a position on one form of fishing at the expense of another.
The report is intended to highlight facts about the utilization of raw materials in the Icelandic fisheries sector, so that it would be possible to formulate a sensible policy on the utilization of marine catch for the future and how to create as much value as possible from it.
It is a key issue for increased value creation in Iceland that the utilization of marine catches be as optimal as possible. On the other hand, there are various factors other than utilization that are important in terms of value creation, such as catch management, choice of processing methods and products, market access and business relationships. It is also clear that costs need to be considered, as well as income, as it is the profitability of fishing, processing and marketing that must support the necessary future investment, for example for research and development.
The Icelandic fisheries sector is doing well internationally when it comes to comparing profitability and utilization of catches. It is gratifying that Matís' report is showing interest and I encourage everyone to familiarize themselves with its contents. It is my hope that in the future there will be an open and honest discussion about the possible ways to increase utilization, value creation and profitability even further.
The report can be accessed here: Improved utilization of marine catch, 2nd edition
Sjöfn Sigurgísladóttir, CEO of Matís.