This summer saw the first time that the Faroese authorities sold part if its mackerel quota by auction.
The authorities sold 20,000t of mackerel quota for €9.7 million, out of the total Faroese mackerel quota of 150,000t.
According to Faroese authorities, as the number of mackerel in Faroese waters has seen large growth in recent years, the mackerel quota for this year was increased, fixing the quota at 150,000t. However, this increase in quota angered the EU and Norway, even being described by Scottish Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead as “nothing short of an outrageous mackerel grab by the Faroes”.
The Faroese Minister of Fisheries, Johan Dahl, decided to sell part of the mackerel quota at the fish auction in Toftir.
The quota was sold in three rounds and the Faroese Exchequer received a total of €9.7m for the 20,000t that were sold.
According to The Faroese Securities Market, the Faroese fishing industry is currently experiencing a diversity of success and disappointment. While the remote fishing fleet and the pelagic fleet are doing well, the domestic demersal fishing fleet is not doing as well.
