Fish landings and prices are still continuing to improve in Shetland according to figures released for 2008 

In August 2003 the new electronic auction was introduced in Shetland. It has attracted more boats to land their fish. In 2009, 105 different boats landed, of which 34 were from Shetland, 61 from Scotland, 2 from Orkney, 2 from England, 2 from Northern Ireland & 4 from Scandinavia. In turn, this has attracted more buyers from UK and Europe, leading to more competitive prices. Indications for 2009 are that the 2008 position has been maintained despite significant quota cuts and massive reductions in fishing effort imposed by EU legislation at the end of 2008. 

White fish landings and values in Shetland since the introduction of the electronic auction 

The volume of white fish landed in 2008 has increased 19.1% and a value growth of 25.6% on the previous year.  This increase demonstrates the significant progress that the auction development has made despite the overall decline in the white fish catching sector. 2009 is showing similar landings (see Weekly Box Landings spreadsheet, now downloadable in White Fish section of website).

The quality and presentation of fish on the market

Shetland Seafood Auctions considers that the quality and accurate presentation of the fish on the market is paramount.  An onshore weighing and grading service providing accurate box weights and grades for high value species, such as monks, cod, lemon, sole, megrims, halibut, turbot and squid is now in place, and all other species are check weighed resulting in improved prices and buyer confidence.  It has also led fishermen to recognise the increased return in bringing their catches to market at the peak of freshness.

Advanced landing information 

Advance landing information is made available on a daily basis, up to 18 hours before each day's market, on the "Landings" page of this web site. The system allows buyers to plan what they are going to buy, well in advance of the market itself. The information includes the names of each boat landing; the total number of boxes to be landed by each boat and the number of boxes split by species and grade.

Daily Fish Prices & Weekly Box Landings

Upon completion of each daily auction, a spreadsheet is updated with the day's maximum and average white fish prices for each species and grade. This information can be accessed via the "Daily Fish Prices" page or the "Recent Prices" page on this web site. We also show the total number of boxes actually landed each day and the names of the boats which landed their fish. The weekly total of boxes landed is shown each Friday and this information is now downloadable from the Weekly Box Landings spreadsheet in the White Fish section of the website.