Seafish on Friday announced that it will support Defra and the Devolved Fisheries Administrations in an open discussion about its future, scheduled for this fall.
Topics to be covered will include the core role and strategic objectives of Seafish; proposed models for the organization’s future structure; and funding and governance arrangements between Seafish, its government sponsors and industry.
A series of industry discussion workshops will be held across the United Kingdom throughout October.
“We welcome the fact that Defra has initiated this discussion, which offers an excellent opportunity for industry to get involved in shaping the future of Seafish,” said Seafish CEO Paul Williams. “This process should ensure that Seafish continues to evolve and meet the needs of the modern seafood industry.
“Despite being severely hampered by the recent court case, we made real progress in our key themed areas of work in the last year, providing an estimated GBP 4 million of value to industry. With the court case now firmly behind us, we are focused on continuing to provide industry with tangible and real benefit for its investment in Seafish. We have recently announced GBP 700,000 worth of funding through our Industry Project Fund which will support various projects across the spectrum of industry.”
The organization’s updated three-year plan will direct 60 percent of its income toward communications activities aimed at consumers and industry. The consumer work will promote seafood as well as protect the reputation of industry by highlighting good news stories and rebutting negative ones.
