Swedish fishermen landed 46,280 metric tons (MT) of seafood products with a first-sales value of EUR 22.8 million (USD 25.9 million) in the first-quarter of 2015, which represented year-on-year decreases of 19 percent and 5 percent, respectively.
The overall decline was mainly the result of a smaller herring catch, although prices for the species were higher than Q1 2015.
According to new figures published by the European Market Observatory for Fisheries and Aquaculture Products (EUMOFA), the top five species landed in Sweden in the last quarter – herring, sprat, coldwater shrimp, langoustines and cod – represented 94 percent of the total first-sales value and 99 percent of the volume. Compared with 2015, these species decreased 5 percent in first-sales value and 19 percent in volume.
The Swedish fleet consists of three main groups: fisheries with pelagic trawls and seines for herring, sprat, mackerel and blue whiting; fisheries with bottom trawls for cod and other demersal species such as sole, coldwater shrimp and langoustines; and fisheries with passive gear (nets, fish pots, cages and longlines) for species including cod, salmon, langoustines, pike-perch, mackerel and herring.
Swedish vessels landed 150,900 MT of fish and shellfish in 2015, a 5 percent increase over the previous year, which was mainly due to a 19 percent higher Swedish quota for herring. Overall, these landings achieved a first-sales value of EUR 91.6 million (USD 104.2 million), up 8 percent.
