Nicki Holmyard

Contributing Editor

Nicki Holmyard lives and breathes the seafood industry. As a specialist freelance writer for 25 years, she has travelled the globe to research in-depth articles, interviews and news stories on all aspects of fishing, aquaculture and processing for international journals and newspapers. She has contributed to books on sustainable seafood sourcing and the effects of climate change on the oceans, and acts as a communications consultant for leading fishing and aquaculture concerns. Nicki is also a director of Offshore Shellfish Ltd, which is developing Europe’s largest rope-grown mussel farm.


Author Archive

Published on
August 5, 2019

Land-based salmon farmer Pure Salmon has just signed a major distribution deal with Japanese trading giant Itochu for the 10,000 metric tons (MT) of Atlantic salmon it aims to produce each year at a new state of the art recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) facility in Tsu City, Japan.

Tsu City is an optimum distance from Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka, allowing easy distribution to Japan’s most populous cities and centers of salmon

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Published on
July 25, 2019

The proliferation of offshore wind, wave, and tidal energy projects, constructed in response to global concerns about climate change and energy security, have been greeted with caution by marine conservationists, who question their possible detrimental consequences on sea life.

Numerous studies have been undertaken to study the behavioral and physiological effects of noise and electromagnetic fields produced by the alternative energy

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Published on
July 23, 2019

A convoy of 40 large trucks and delivery vans got the Dutch mussel season underway earlier this month, reviving a tradition that had lapsed for a number of years, as processors vied with each other to be the first to start the season with their own promotional events.

This year, a degree of cooperation was achieved, with no company breaking the embargo, and a party atmosphere prevailing at the opening ceremony in the mussel fishing village of

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Published on
July 17, 2019

A new study published in the journal Science reveals that the world’s marine fisheries form a single global network – linked by transnational flows of fish larvae – rather than existing as discrete groups. 

Researchers from the United States and the United Kingdom believe that their work could lead to greater international cooperation in the way fish stocks are managed in the future.

The study combined data from

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Published on
June 24, 2019

A new report from FAIRR, an investor network focused on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues in protein supply chains and the global food system, cautions investors to be wary of fed aquaculture, but recommends greater investment in shellfish farming.

FAIRR’s member network, who are responsible for managing USD 12.6 trillion (EUR 11.1 trillion) of assets and investments, includes such influential players as Aviva, DNB Asset

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Published on
June 12, 2019

Marcus Coleman, the CEO of Seafish – the public body supporting the GBP 10 billion (USD 12.7 billion, EUR 11.3 billion) U.K. seafood industry – has been busy studying whether global seafood industry trends offer opportunities or threats for the United Kingdom’s shellfish supply chain.

In his recent presentation at the Shellfish Association of Great Britain annual conference, Coleman focused on the threat that plastic waste

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Published on
June 5, 2019

A report released 5 June by The Pew Charitable Trusts – along with its E.U. Coalition partners Oceana, WWF, The Nature Conservancy, and the Environmental Justice Foundation – outlines the minimum transparency and anti-IUU fishing measures considered to be vital for the regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs), who manage fish stocks in more than 90 percent of the world’s oceans.

The report, “Achieving

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Published on
May 28, 2019

With a growing consensus that climate change is causing drastic transformations of marine ecosystems and fish stock dynamics, two recent studies have addressed the importance of taking a more adaptive and responsive approach to their management.

The first study, published in the ICES Journal of Marine Science, shows that adjusting fishing levels when fish populations change is key to making global fisheries more climate-resilient. The result of

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Published on
May 24, 2019

“How can we engender enthusiasm in children for eating seafood?” asked Karen Galloway – owner of KAGC Limited, a company specialized in strategic development and consumer insights, and a former employee at Seafish – in her Drummond Lecture at the Shellfish Association of Great Britain this week. “Many studies have shown that children who eat seafood regularly have increased IQ and a better quality of sleep, yet

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Published on
May 14, 2019

The Chilean jack mackerel (Trachurus murphyi) fishery has become the biggest Marine Stewardship Council-certified fishery in Latin America, following a 15-month assessment against the MSC fisheries standard.

Since the 1970s, this fish has become one of the world's most important commercial fish species, and Chile is the main fisher for this product in the Pacific Ocean. In 2018, Chilean exports reached USD 166 million (EUR 148 million). Now, the

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