The Icelandic fishing fleet landed seafood with a total value of ISK 137.5 billion (USD 1.2 billion, EUR 1.1 billion) in the 12 months from September 2015 to August 2016, a decrease of 10.6 percent year-on-year. During this period, the value of the country’s demersal, pelagic and shellfish catches decreased by 1.9 percent, 36.6 percent and 5.1 percent respectively, while a 3.4 percent value increase was posted for its flatfish landings, according to new figures published by Statistics Iceland.
The country’s demersal catch achieved a value of ISK 99 billion (USD 882 million, EUR 830.8 million), with only cod and ocean redfish posted any increase in value – up 5.7 percent and 5.2 percent to ISK 61.3 billion (USD 546.1 million, EUR 514.5 million) and ISK 597.4 million (USD 5.3 million, EUR 5 million) respectively.
At the same time, its pelagic earnings totaled ISK 24.9 billion (USD 221.8 million, EUR 209 million). In this category, blue whiting was the only species to provide any growth – up 3.1 percent to ISK 5.5 billion (USD 49 million, EUR 46.2 million).
The value of Iceland’s flatfish landings reached almost ISK 9.8 billion (USD 87.3 million, EUR 82.2 million), while its shellfish catch value amounted to ISK 3.8 billion (USD 33.9 million, EUR 31.9 million).
Around ISK 72 billion (USD 641.4 million, EUR 604.6 million) worth of Iceland’s landings went directly for domestic processing, while ISK 20.2 billion (USD 180 million, EUR 169.6 million) worth was sold at auction for domestic processing in the 12-month period.
Landings valued at ISK 5.1 billion (USD 45.4 million, EUR 42.8 million) were exported in containers and the frozen-at-sea catch totaled ISK 38.8 billion (USD 345.7 million, EUR 325.8 million).
