Eight members of the Fishmongers’ Company of London visited Shetland this week (from Wednesday 6 September until Friday 9 September), as part of a wider training and development visit to Scotland.

The Company is one of the most ancient of the City Guilds, upholding standards in the trading of fish and shellfish, and supporting the fisheries industry for over 700 years.

An itinerary was prepared to give the visitors an insight into Shetland’s seafood industries. The group will have the opportunity to take a boat trip on the ‘Moder Dy’ from Scalloway to visit mussel farms in the area. They will gain an insight into Shetland’s pelagic processing industry by visiting Shetland Catch. Then, an early start, will introduce them to the innovative electronic fish trading at Lerwick Fish Market. The comprehensive services offered by the NAFC Marine Centre to the fishing industry, in terms of training and education courses, research and development, consultancy and advisory services, and the range of services provided by SSQC, will be illustrated and explained in a visit to the NAFC Marine Centre. Seafood will also be the theme during a visit to Shetland College, when chefs from the group will join students to cook up some of the islands’ seafood bounty. There will also be a lunch stop at the award-winning Frankie’s Fish and Chips.

The trip is being organised by Martin Leyland, manager of Shetland Seafood Auctions and Ruth Henderson, chief executive of Seafood Shetland. Martin said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to give the Fishmongers’ Company an insight into Shetland’s seafood industry. It is important that those involved in seafood sales not only know the origin of their product, but also understand the complexities of the industry, and how it operates.”

FURTHER INFORMATION

For further information, please contact: Ruth Henderson, Seafood Shetland, tel: +44 (0)1595 693644 or email: ruth@fishuk.net or, Isabel Johnson, Shaw Marketing and Design Ltd, tel: +44 (01595) 692465 or email: isabel.johnson@shaw-online.com