Seafish Wales Advisory Committee meeting

Seafish Wales Advisory Committee meeting Minutes of 9 th meeting Held on: 11/08/16 Location: Menai Bridge Attendees: Colin Charman (Natural Resources Wales) Marcus Coleman (Seafish Chief Executive Officer) Jim Evans (Welsh Fisherman s Association) Andy Fraser (Welsh Government Head of Fisheries) Dr Angus Garrett (Seafish Head of Horizon Scanning and Long Term Issues) Malcolm Large (Seafish Head of International Trade and Regions) Prof Lewis LeVay (Centre for Applied Marine Sciences, Director) Bethan Jones (Seafood Market and Supply Chain Manager, Welsh Government) Trevor Jones (Bangor Mussel Producers Association Ltd.) Prof Mike Kaiser (Bangor University, Fisheries and Conservation Science) Jon Parker (Seafish Panel Chair) Greg Philpot (Welsh Seafish Industry Training Association Ltd.) Dr Holly Whiteley (Seafish Wales Manager) Brian Young (Seafish Board, Acting Chair) James Wilson (Seafish Board member (Chair)) Apologies: Stuart Evans (Welsh Government Marine and Fisheries Division) Prof Carlos Garcia de Leaniz (Swansea University, CSAR Director) Ashley Jones (Selwyn s Seafoods Ltd.) Wayne Jones (Mermaid Seafoods) John Penaluna (Penaluna s Famous Fish and Chips) Lee Penaluna (Penaluna s Famous Fish and Chips) Dr Tom Pickerell (Seafish Technical Director) John Rudder (Castlebay Seafoods Ltd.) Daniel Thomas (Welsh Government Food Policy Lead,) Richard Williams (WM Shellfish Ltd.) 1. Welcome, introductions and apologies (James Wilson, Chair) James Wilson (JW) welcomed everyone to the 9th Seafish Wales Advisory Committee meeting and introductions were made. Apologies were noted as above. JW discussed the aspiration to present the SWAC-lead Welsh Seafood Strategy to the Minister during Seafood Week in October 2016 (7th to 14th). This meant that targets for 30% growth and the high level objectives of the Strategy needed agreeing as soon as possible, in order to have the Strategy prepared in time for October. It was suggested that a declaration of interest at the beginning of meetings would be valuable. ACTION 1: JW to include declaration of interest at future meetings and HW to be include declaration of interest in SWAC Terms of Reference (ToRs). 2. Review of previous meeting minutes and matters arising (James Wilson, Chairman) 1

Minutes from the previous meeting on 30/03/16 were reviewed and an update regarding matters arising was provided. ACTION 1: All Committee members to review Welsh Seafood Supply Chain and provide comment / feedback by Wednesday 13 April. To send feedback directly to holly.whiteley@seafish.co.uk. COMPLETED. ACTION 2: Holly to progress development of Welsh seafood business case studies and facilitation of Seafood Week event(s) in Wales. IN PROGRESS. ACTION 2: Holly to continue to progress Welsh business case studies and Seafood Week events. ACTION 3: SWAC members to contact Holly if they would like their business to be featured in a Welsh seafood business case study or if they would be interested in hosting or supporting a Seafood Week Event. CASE STUDIES AND SEAFOOD WEEK EVENT PLANNING IN PROGRESS. ACTION 4: All Committee members to review draft Welsh Seafood Strategy discussion document and provide comment / feedback by Wednesday 13 April. To send feedback directly to holly.whiteley@seafish.co.uk. NO RESPONSES RECEIVED VIA EMAIL. FACE-TO-FACE MEETINGS WITH SWAC MEMBERS COMPLETED. ACTION 5: Holly and Bethan to refine Strategy proposal based on comments received from SWAC and prepare a high-level briefing document on the Strategy ready for sign-off at the next SWAC meeting. Briefing document be presented to the incoming Minister in September. SUMMARY OF SWAC RESPONSES COMPLETED AND CIRCULATED TO SWAC MEMBERS. ACTION 6: Holly to confirm venue for next SWAC meeting on 30th June as soon as possible. COMPLETED. 3. Fishing Safety Update (Greg Philpot, Welsh Seafish Industry Training Association) Greg Philpot (GP) provided a fishing safety update to the Committee. Over 400 fishermen from across the Welsh coast have applied for and received Seafish-funded Personal Floatation Devices (PFDs). GP informed the Committee that changing the safety culture of the fishing industry, and encouraging fishermen to wear their PFDs was a difficult task. However, the recent tragic loss of the Harvester has refocused industry attention on safety issues. Mike Kaiser (MK) suggested that the issue of wearing PFDs was complicated, as some potters preferred not to wear them, in case they were pulled over side by the pot line and were unable to cut themselves loose. A bottom-up approach to addressing fishing safety issues was required. Holly Whiteley (HW) informed the Committee of the fishing safety projects she was working on, at the request of catching sector SWAC representatives. This included the establishment of an industry-lead Wales Fishing Safety Committee, to help identify and address key fishing health and safety issues in Wales with practical, workable solutions. There was also a discussion around the provision of advanced, more realistic training for fishermen, so that they would be better prepared to deal with incidents. A comparison was made to Iceland, where they had experienced no fishing-related deaths in recent years. It was noted that in Iceland fishermen have to attend a sea survival course every year and that wearing life jackets was compulsory. Trevor Jones (TJ) informed the Committee that the Fishing Industry Safety Group (FISG) are currently looking for appropriate training venues to make fishermen s safety training more realistic in the UK. 2

Marcus Coleman (MC) highlighted that the incident feedback loop that occurs in other dangerous environments (e.g. building sites) is not as strong in the fishing industry. Unlike other industries, the same incidents are happening time and time again in fishing particularly Man Over Board (MOB). In terms of raising awareness, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) produces detailed, robust reports on fishing incidents, but the information is not very accessible and wider dissemination of the lessons learned is not effective. There was a suggestion to review fishing safety data in more detail to look at different regions and fleet segments in order to try and help identify drivers of incidents. MK highlighted that Jon Harman had previously commissioned a piece of Seafish work to look at this, but unfortunately the number of marine incidents in the UK were so low that there was not enough to do a robust analysis. There was a brief discussion over targets fishing industry safety in the UK. TJ informed the Committee that Seafish and the FISG has a target of zero fishing-related fishing deaths. The Wales Fishing Safety project currently being progressed will have the same target. JW wrapped up the discussion by highlighting the clear need for fishing safety culture to change in Wales, and noted the important role of more realistic safety training and greater awareness in achieving this. 4. What s on the Welsh seafood industry horizon - identifying opportunities and risks / barriers to growth (Dr Angus Garrett, Seafish Head of Horizon Scanning & Long Term Issues) JW introduced Dr Angus Garrett (AG), Seafish Head of Horizon Scanning & Long Term Issues, to the Committee. AG introduced the concept of Horizon Scanning and outlined his work in the area to date. Horizon scanning for the seafood industry involves identifying potential risks or threats to industry, as well as possible positive opportunities. AG highlighted that the risks or opportunities to consider aren t those immediate, present risks that are currently facing industry, but those risks that are beyond the now, taking a longer term view into the future. The benefit of horizon scanning is to identify upcoming risks and opportunities early and allow time to identify options to respond effectively before they manifest. It was noted that risks and opportunities can change and develop over time, therefore it is valuable to review upcoming risks and opportunities on a regular basis. AG outlined his work on horizon scanning for the seafood industry at the UK level. Risks and opportunities have been mapped, and those that are considered greatest importance at the UK scale have been highlight (measured by the frequency by which they are cited as risks or opportunities by industry). The SWAC meeting presented an opportunity to refine the seafood industry risk maps created by this work in a Wales context, i.e. identify which risks and opportunities are most relevant to Wales. In particular, identifying these in the context of the industry aspiration for 30% growth in 5 to 10 years, i.e. which opportunities and risks that could facilitate or hinder this growth aspiration, would be incredibly useful for inform the further development of the SWAC Welsh Seafood Strategy in terms of identifying priorities for enabling 30% growth. AG introduced the UK seafood industry risk maps, which captured 190 risks collated over last 12-15 months. These 190 risks are broken down into 6 key themes: Macro trade, geo-politics, and food security Food safety and integrity NGO and consumer focus Image and demographic changes 3

Ethics and slavery Other e.g. technology, public sector (austerity), climate change ACTION 3: Holly to collated and circulate Horizon Scanning outputs to all Committee members for comment / feedback. The outputs from the Welsh seafood industry Horizon Scanning exercise are summarised in Annex 1 - Welsh seafood industry horizon: Identifying opportunities and threats to growth. 5. Welsh Seafood Strategy: SWAC s vision for growth (All) Following on from the Horizon Scanning exercise, JW opened up a discussion regarding the 30% growth target that had been mooted at the previous Committee meeting. The following points were discussed: Options for growth include increasing production volume of existing fisheries and aquaculture (including under-utilised species), establishing new fisheries, and increasing the value of products, for example through processing and accessing new markets. The balance between volume and value needs to be considered, and it was noted that simply increasing volumes, particular of existing species, may simply result in a reduction in value of landings (due to oversupply). If the focus is purely on production volume, the natural variability of fisheries and the environment also needs to be considered. Declines in production can occur due to external circumstances / forces out of our control. It was also highlighted that once Maximum Sustainable yield is achieved the production of wild capture fisheries will plateau. For many Welsh fisheries, e.g. crustaceans, whelk, queen scallop, access to the resource is currently not controlled. These fisheries are exposed to the risk of overexploitation and a reduction in economic performance / benefit to Wales. Maximising economic value per unit of production / maximising profitability needs to be central to the Strategy for achieving 30% growth. The environmental impact of production also needs to be considered, particularly as the majority of Welsh fisheries and aquaculture operations occur in European Marine Sites. In order to achieve the above (maximum economic value and minimum environmental impact per unit of production), appropriate, adaptive legislative / management frameworks need to be established. Changing legislative frameworks requires evidence and can take time to be developed and implemented. This will influence the feasible timescales for achieving 30% growth of the sector. It was highlighted that changes to the legislative frameworks for scallop and cockle management in Wales were already underway. A robust evidence base and appropriate, adaptive, legislative frameworks also need to be established to enable the sustainable exploitation new fisheries in Wales. For new fisheries this likely to take longer to establish compared to existing fisheries. It was agreed that improving management of existing fisheries and maximising their economic performance plus expanding aquaculture production in Wales offered the greatest opportunities for economic growth in the short term (0 to 10 years) and should be Strategy priorities / key High Level Objectives. Exploring opportunities for new fisheries in Wales and was considered a Strategy priority for supporting medium to longer term economic growth (5 to 15 years). In light of the above, the current legislative / management frameworks and data deficiency for key commercial species and potential commercial species in Wales were highlighted as a key barrier to growth. Establishing a robust evidence base and fit-for-purpose legislative / management frameworks to enable sustainable management and expansion of aquaculture were therefore considered key Strategy actions. 4

It was agreed to a quick exercise to scope out the status quo with respect to current legislative / management frameworks and current understanding of the status and biological potential of fisheries in Wales was required in order to help identify priority opportunities and effective actions for the Welsh Seafood Strategy in terms of improving the management of existing fisheries and maximising their economic performance. Lack of knowledge / training about business planning was also highlighted as a potential barrier to improving the profitability of fishery and aquaculture operations in Wales. ACTION 4: Holly produce a two-page overview of status quo with respect to current legislative / management frameworks and understanding of the status and biological potential of fisheries in Wales. It was agreed that improving the health and safety of the Welsh fishing fleet was also a top priority / High Level Objective (based around discussion held at the beginning of the meetings). Action to improve health and safety standards of the Welsh fishing fleet is already underway and will be announced externally next month (September 2016). Adding value to Welsh fishery and aquaculture products was also considered a key Strategy priority / High Level Objective. A number of barriers to growth for this sector and suggested actions to address these had been highlighted by SWAC members during one-to-one discussions with HW. These can be seen in Annex 2 - Defining SWAC s vision for industry growth: Summary of SWAC responses. Further discussion with the Committee, particularly with onshore sector representatives, is required to identify feasible targets, timescales, and effective actions for adding value to product. The importance / role of marketing and promotion of Welsh seafood products in supporting the above aspirations for growth were highlighted. The general small scale nature of Welsh industry and the environmental credentials of its fisheries and aquaculture (sustainable operations in European Marine Sites) mean that there are excellent marketing opportunities for Welsh product. In addition to a robust evidence base for sustainable management and high health and safety standards for the primary production sector, Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and Responsible Fishing Scheme (RFS) accreditations were cited as potential useful tools or brand values for promoting the integrity of Welsh seafood products. In summary, the following opportunities for growth (Strategy High Level Objectives) were identified and ranked in order of priority: Short - medium term 1 Improve the safety of the Welsh fishing fleet. 2 Improve the economic (and environmental) performance of existing fisheries. 3 Expand shellfish aquaculture production. 4 Add value to fishery and aquaculture products Medium - long term 5 Explore opportunities for new fisheries and expand the use of under-utilised species. The following key facilitating / supporting factors were identified: Fit-for-purpose, adaptive management frameworks for existing and new fisheries. A robust evidence base for sustainable fisheries and aquaculture management. Marketing and promotion (including development of Welsh seafood brand values). Support for investment (e.g. improving access to capital). Trade development. 5

ACTION 5: Holly to progress development of Strategy in light of SWAC responses ( Annex 2 - Defining SWAC s vision for industry growth: Summary of SWAC responses), horizon scanning outputs ( Annex 1 - Welsh seafood industry horizon: Identifying opportunities and threats to growth ) and subsequent discussion. 6. Updates There was not enough time to cover updates in detail. The Seafish Wales Update can be found in Annex 3 - Seafish Wales update_august 2016. A general Welsh Government update and general Seafish update will be provided to Committee members via email. JW gave a brief update on the Food & Drink Industry Board, informing the Committee that a new brand logo for Welsh Food & Drink had been developed, and that brand values were in the process of being defined. These are due to be announced end of September. 7. Confirm date and agenda of next meeting (All) ACTION 6: Holly to confirm date and venue for next SWAC meeting as soon as possible. 8. Any Other Business (AOB) No items were raised under AOB. SUMMARY OF ACTIONS ACTION 1: JW to include declaration of interest at future meetings and HW to be include declaration of interest in SWAC Terms of Reference (ToRs). ACTION 2: Holly to continue to progress Welsh business case studies and Seafood Week events. ACTION 3: Holly to collated and circulate Horizon Scanning outputs to all Committee members for comment / feedback. ACTION 4: Holly produce a two-page overview of status quo with respect to current legislative / management frameworks and understanding of the status and biological potential of fisheries in Wales. ACTION 5: Holly to progress development of Strategy in light of SWAC responses (Annex 2 - ), horizon scanning outputs and preceding discussion. ACTION 6: Holly to confirm date and venue for next SWAC meeting as soon as possible. 6