The herring season is showing promising results in East Iceland. The pelagic vessels Beitir NK and Börkur NK both landed large catches in Neskaupstaður last week, with crews and processors reporting strong fishing and smooth production.
Strong catches from Beitir NK
Beitir NK returned on Thursday with 1,410 tonnes. The fish were caught north of Glettinganes, with skipper Tómas Kárason pleased about both the size of the herring and the vessel’s performance.
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“We made three hauls. Two provided us with approximately 400 tonnes each, and the last one provided us with 610 tonnes. Everyone on board is in high spirits,” skipper Tómas Kárason said.
The vessel also tested a new three-wing trawl supplied by Hampiðjan, a design now being adopted by the pelagic fleet.
Börkur NK lands 1,700 tonnes
Shortly after, Börkur NK arrived with 1,700 tonnes, mainly taken from the Litlagrunn grounds in Héraðsflói. According to skipper Hjörvar Hjálmarsson, the fishing was steady, with hauls ranging from 130 to 570 tonnes.
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“This went very well. The share of Icelandic summer-spawning herring was high. Unloading started this morning and will take one to two days,” skipper Hjörvar Hjálmarsson said.
Smooth processing at the factory
Processing at Síldarvinnslan’s plant in Neskaupstaður is also running without problems. Larger herring are frozen whole, while smaller fish are used for fillet production.
“Everything looks good. The season so far has gone as well as anyone could wish,” said plant manager Geir Sigurpáll Hlöðversson.
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With strong landings and efficient processing, this year’s herring season is off to a promising start for both crews and the local industry.
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