Increased fish landings and improved prices
The introduction of the electronic auction
In August 2003 the new electronic auction was introduced in Shetland. The flexibility of the system allows buyers to buy direct or through a remote facility. It has increased the ease with which the industry can purchase and sell their fish. It has attracted more boats to land their fish. In 2006, 95 different boats landed, of which 73 were from Scotland, Orkney & Scandinavia. In turn, this has attracted more buyers from UK and Europe, leading to more competitive prices.
White fish landings and values in Shetland since the introduction of the electronic auction
The volume of white fish landed in 2006 has increased 15% and a value growth of 42% 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.
| Year |
Value Landed |
Tonnage Landed |
| 2007 |
£19.5m |
12,969 |
| 2006 |
£16.5m |
11,344
|
| 2005 |
£11.6m |
9,850 |
| 2004 |
£8.9m |
8,965 |
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 for high value species, such as monks, cod, lemon, sole, megrims, halibut, turbot and squid is now in place and has resulted in improved prices. 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
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 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.