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
May 1, 2023

A “think global, act local” tactic being used by the Norwegian Seafood Council (NSC) is paying dividends by driving awareness and consumption of Norwegian seafood on the domestic market and abroad. 

The NSC, which has honed its use of market insight and localized consumer campaigns to enhance the consumption and value of Norwegian seafood, undertook projects across Europe in 2022, with the premise that encouraging consumption of

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Published on
April 17, 2023

Marks and Spencer Aquaculture and Fisheries Manager Linda Wood is on a mission to use technological innovation to improve the treatment of marine animals eaten for food.

At a recent three-day seminar in Norway held jointly with Optimar, a seafood technology company based in Valderøya, Norway, Wood said it is imperative that better animal welfare standards are implemented across the seafood industry.

“Animal welfare is fast becoming

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Published on
April 5, 2023

Each year, 420 million individual prawns, shrimps, lobster, langoustine, and crab are caught in the United Kingdom and a further five billion are imported, worth a combined GBP 670 million (USD 797 million, EUR 754 million).

With the sentience of decapod crustaceans recently recognized in U.K. law through the 2021 Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act, the non-governmental organization Crustacean Compassion has taken the lead in pushing to use the law

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Published on
March 21, 2023

Andfjord Salmon remains on track with its plan to increase production at its land-based, flowthrough system in Kvalnes, Norway, according to its Q4 2022 financial update.

Andfjord Salmon CEO Martin Rasmussen told shareholders at a presentation of Q4 2022 results the company had provided “successful provided proof of concept” with its first large salmon pool, which was stocked with smolts in June 2022.

“Briefly summarized,

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Published on
March 17, 2023

Three new reports for 2023 look at the current state of the global seaweed industry, its future potential, and the health risks of eating it.

In its State of the Industry 2023 report, seaweed industry tracker Phyconomy found more than USD 375 million (EUR 351 million) in disclosed equity investment has been placed in seaweed projects in the past three years. Phyconomy tracks the emerging seaweed economy using publicly available data.

The

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Published on
March 9, 2023

Faroese salmon-farming firm Bakkafrost is forging ahead with an ambitious DKK 6.2 billion (USD 886 million, EUR 833 million) investment plan for 2022-2026, with a heavy focus on Scotland.

In 2019, Bakkafrost purchased a majority stake in the Scottish Salmon Company for NOK 3.76 billion (USD 411.1 million, EUR 374 million at time of sale), making it Scotland's second-largest salmon farmer by volume. It has since renamed the operations to

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Published on
February 28, 2023

A London, England-based start-up is planning a 5,000-metric-ton land-based Atlantic salmon farm in the historic fishing town of Grimsby, U.K., which currently serves as the U.K.’s major seafood-processing hub.

Dubbed the New Clee Aquaculture Facility, the 40,000-square-meter development will include a recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) farm, an integrated processing unit, a water treatment plant, and a feed storage unit. It will be

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Published on
February 27, 2023

A year after launching technology that enables food manufacturers to utilize ground-up chicken bones and hard tissues in their products, Finnish food tech company SuperGround has expanded into the seafood space.

SuperGround's patented process softens, heat-treats, and grinds fish byproducts – including previously unusable bones, skin, scales, and other hard tissue – into a thick paste that can be used in the production of fish

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Published on
February 20, 2023

The recent launch of a U.K.-wide Food and Drink Export Council by the Department for International Trade heralds a new era for British exports, according to Seafood Scotland Chief Executive Donna Fordyce, who will be serving on the council representing the seafood industry.

The initiative, set up in response to one of 22 recommendations from a 2021 Trade and Agricultural Commission report, aims to boost U.K. food and drink exports in the

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Published on
February 6, 2023

The E.U. has long given its due to artisanal and small-scale fisheries, with high-level consideration to their contribution to human wellbeing, food provision, and environmental stewardship, as well as the challenges they face from climate, economic, and political changes. But the same understanding is not extended to small-scale aquaculture, according to Ola Öberg, president of the Swedish producer organization Recirkfisk, whose membership

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