This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Fishing income increases
20/09/2006
The value of fish catches landed into Scottish ports increased by 16 percent last year according to new figures published today.
The Sea Fisheries Statistics show that 483 thousand tonnes of fish were caught with a value of 349 million pounds last year.
The increase comes against a three per cent fall in the number of trips to sea making the 69 thousand voyages made in 2005 more productive than the previous year.
Other main findings include:
Landings by Scottish-based vessels
- Pelagic species (Herring and mackerel) landings formed 68 per cent of the total landings and contributed to 33 per cent of the total value landed
- White fish species (cod and haddock) made up 21 per cent of total weight landed and formed 35 per cent of the total value landed
- High value shellfish landings formed 11 per cent of the total by weight but 32 per cent by value
- The whitefish fleet remained the most valuable to the Scottish based sector in 2005
- The value of white fish landings increased by 8 per cent in real terms in 2005 to reach £123 million, reversing the decline observed over the period 2001-2004
- Over 2001-2005, the value of pelagic landings (at 2005 prices) has increased by 6 per cent from £108 million in 2001 to £114 million in 2005
- The value of shellfish landings has also increased in real terms by 6 per cent over the period to reach £112 million
Scottish Fishing Fleet
- There were 2,376 active fishing vessels based in Scotland at the end of 2005, a net reduction of 18 (under 1 per cent) since 2004
Employment in Sea Fisheries
- Total employment in the catching sector fell by six per cent to 4,971 between 2004 to 2005 while the number of fishermen regularly employed on Scottish based vessels, at 3,813, was eight per cent lower in 2005. The number of irregularly employed (mainly part time) fishermen in 2005 increased by 13 to 1,065
- At a district level, the biggest losses in regular employment occurred at Ayr (-110) jobs and Peterhead (-101 jobs)
- The biggest employment gain was seen at Shetland, which gained 44 regular fishing jobs
This is a Scottish Executive National Statistics publication. National statistics are produced to high professional standards set out in the National Statistics Code of Practice. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.
Collection of data
SEERAD's sea fisheries database (the Fisheries Information Network - FIN) holds details of, among other things, all landings into Scotland and landings abroad by Scottish based vessels (ie vessels licensed at a Scottish port). Information on voyages - catches, gear, sea area fished etc - is supplied by skippers who are required under EU regulations to maintain logbooks.
Data on landings - weight, presentation, price etc - is provided by fish sellers under similar EU legislation. SFPA port offices collate the information and enter it locally, and each night it is automatically transmitted to the FIN central server in Pentland House.
There are details of about 80,000 voyages and over 1 million sale items recorded on the database each year. DEFRA maintains a similar system for landings into England, Wales & Northern Ireland, and by EWNI vessels landing abroad.
Value of Landings
When the Register of Buyers and Sellers (RBS) was introduced in September 2005, Sales Notes were not initially required for sales of Shellfish and information on the value of such landings is consequently missing. The value has therefore been estimated for a number of landings, mostly of shellfish, relating to voyages starting on or after September 1, 2005.