Animal Welfare in the Context of Marine Mammal Hunting
Status by 2025: where are we, what can we do better?

Marine Mammal Welfare Workshop (WWS) 2025, organisert av North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO), har som mål å fremme samtalen om velferd for sjøpattedyr i jaktsammenheng. Dette endagsarrangementet, som avholdes i mars 2025, vil samle ulike interessenter, inkludert NAMMCO-medlemsland, internasjonale deltakere (f.eks. Japan, USA, Canada), urfolksrepresentanter, jegere, veterinærer, beslutningstakere og forskere.

WWS vil gi en omfattende oversikt over de nåværende velferdsresultatene ved fangst av sjøpattedyr, identifisere utfordringer som jegere står overfor, utforske områder som trenger forbedringer, og prioritere tiltak for å oppnå størst mulig velferdsforbedring.

Deltakerne vil bidra med oppdatert velferdsinformasjon, som vil bli brukt til å fastslå status quo og fremme diskusjoner om viktige velferdsspørsmål, som tilstrekkelighet og vedlikehold av våpen, tid til død, øyeblikkelig dødsrate, tap, dyrenes bevissthetsnivå, jegernes ferdigheter og opplæring, velferdsovervåkingssystemer, myndighetenes involvering og velferdsreguleringer.

WWS forventes å levere en detaljert rapport med konkrete anbefalinger for å forbedre velferden for sjøpattedyr og påvirke fremtidige politiske endringer innen NAMMCO-medlemslandene og utover. Det langsiktige målet er å etablere bærekraftige jaktpraksiser med høy dyrevelferd, fremme internasjonalt samarbeid, og sikre velvære for sjøpattedyr, samtidig som man respekterer kulturelle og økonomiske aspekter ved tradisjonell jakt. Denne workshopen vil fungere som en katalysator for pågående samarbeid og oppstarten av nye for å øke tempoet i forbedringen av sjøpattedyrs velferd i Norden og globalt.

HOVEDPARTNER:

Geneviève Desportes, NAMMCO, Norge, genevieve@nammco.org

ANDRE PARTNERE:

NAMMCO Secretariat, Ian Bolduc, Deputy Secretary (Planning Group)
Faroe Islands:
• Páll Nolsøe – Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Industry and Trade
• Ulla Svarrer Wang – Ministry of Fisheries
Greenland:
• Amalie Jessen – Ministry of Fisheries and Hunting (Planning Group)
Iceland:
• Hallveig Ólafsdóttir – Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries
• Jóhann Ásmundsson – Directorate of Fisheries (Planning Group)
Norway:
• Petter Meier – Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries
• Guro Gjelsvik – Directorate of Fisheries
• Kathrine Ryeng – Institute of Marine Research (Planning Group)

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:

DKK 195.000

The main objective of the project is to identify greenhouse gas emissions in Nordic aquatic food production, the main drivers behind them, and to estimate the size of greenhouse gas emissions.

The project will link emissions to individual seafood products, based on models from other studies, which will enable comparisons with other food products. The project will also estimate in which parts of the value chain the largest emissions occur, and how these vary between nations. Furthermotre point out the largest categories of waste in Nordic aquatic food production throughout the value chain from primary production to retail, and highlight the effect this can have on actors and society as a whole. Quantifying waste, both in terms of extent and significance, is outside the scope of the project, but possible improvement potential in the value chains will be pointed out.

The primary target group will be authorities and administrations in the Nordic countries, as well as industry players and research and assessment communities. The project will be led by Nofima and carried out in collaboration with other Nordic communities within fisheries and business economics.

An initial literature study of research in the area will be carried out. This will provide a basis for conducting analyses in individual value chains in, and between, different Nordic countries and in different parts of the value chains, also to identify national differences.

Nordic cooperation will help to uncover the most important inequalities in the value chains for aquatic food production, and identify the most important challenges for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and waste in these. The outcome of the project is of a general nature, but will contribute to increased attention to important issues in the work on green transition and sustainable resource utilization, which will remain after the project.

Web page: https://portal.research.lu.se/en/projects/nordisk-satsing-p%C3%A5-akvatiske-matsystemer

MAIN PARTNER:

John R. Isaksen, Nofima, Norge, john.isaksen@nofima.no

OTHER PARTNERS:

Max Nielsen, lektor, Institutt for Fødevarer og Ressourceøkonomi (IFRO), Københavns Universitet, DK
Cecilia Hammarlund, utredare, AgriFood Economics Centre, Universitetet i Lund, SWE
Sveinn Agnarsson, prófessor, Háskóli Íslands (Islands Universitet)
Ella Hellström, research scientist, Natural Resources Institute Finland (LUKE)
Hans Ellefsen, associate professor, Fróðskaparsetur Føroya (University of the Faroese Islands)

Funding from AG-Fisk:

DKK 1.500.000

MacroCat – Biocatalytic refining of polysaccharides from macroalgae – new markets

MACROCAT will help expanding the product portfolio of emerging seaweed biorefineries and potential end-users by introducing new innovative products that can be generated by microbial conversion and enzymatic processing. This will promote and further advance the utilization of sustainable natural biomass resource, the seaweeds and advance technical and economic development and value creation by the Blue Growth industry in the Nordic countries.

Seaweeds are a source of various primary products, including a great diversity of polysaccharides that can be extracted in appreciable amounts. Technologies for bulk cultivation of macroalgae are also being developed, which will increase capabilities to meet industrial demands with regard to particular seaweed species, volume, and carbohydrate composition. Currently, seaweed polysaccharides are mainly utilized as hydrocolloids in foods and certain pharmaceutical applications, and as minor ingredients in food, feed, and cosmetics. However, recent research shows that the different seaweed polysaccharides possess a range of highly beneficial biological activities to help prevent chronic and degenerative diseases. MACROCAT looks beyond the current market position of the seaweed industry- and will advocate the high potential value of biocatalytic refining processes to deliver tailormade, high value seaweed polysaccharide products for new market sections, especially in health and pharma.

MACROCAT will help advance the seaweed processing platform towards a mature biorefinery for eventual bulk production of variety of high value health-promoting biomolecules, platform chemicals for the chemical industry and biofuels. So far, progress has been hampered by the lack of suitable bioconversion tools, enzymes and microbes, in terms of substrate processing range and product possibilities. This picture has been changing in recent years and new opportunities arising. MACROCAT will help strengthen and expand potentials of existing seaweed processing industries in the Nordic countries with their long shorelines and access to vast sea areas for off-shore cultivation of macroalgae. The consortium is in the forefront of developing enzymes and enzymatic processes for refining seaweed polysaccharides to innovative added value products. The provision of well-defined and uniform products will also help document and understand the mechanisms underlying the beneficial activities. The group has been taking part in major international projects of seaweed utilization focusing on biocatalytic conversion of polysaccharides to value added derivatives.

HOVEDPARTNER:

Matís, Island, Guðmundur Hreggviðsson, gudmundo@matis.is

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Technical University of Denmark, (DTU), Denmark, Principal investigator (PI): Prof Anne S. Meyer Head, Protein Chemistry and Enzyme Technology Division DTU Bioengineering Dept. of Biotechnology and Biomedicine

Lund University, (LUND), Sweden. PI: Prof Eva Nordberg Karlsson, Head of Division of Biotechnology at Lund University

LL – Bioeconomy, (LL), Denmark, an advisory and research SME in green and blue biotech. PI: Prof Lene Lange. CEO of LL. Lene is a member of the EU-Commission expert group on the review of the Bioeconomy Strategy and its Action Plan & Member of the Scientific Committee of BBI JU

Associate Partners:

Thorverk, Iceland, https://thorverk.is. Coastal seaweed harvesting and processing company

Seaweed Solutions, Norway, https://seaweedsolutions.com/ , Offshore Seaweed cultivation, and processing

ORF, Ocean rainforest, Faroe Islands,  https://www.oceanrainforest.com/ , Offshore Seaweed cultivation, and processing

Aventure AB, Sweden,  www.aventureab.com., A research-based company in the field of food , nutrition  and biotechnology. 

LactoBio, Denmark,  https://www.lactobio.com/pages/our-science, A research-based company in the field of skincare , and biotechnology. 

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:

DKK 575.000

10.-12. Marts 2025

AG-Fisk og EK-Fisk møder i København

https://nordiskfiskerisamarbejde.dk/

 

 

 

Et blomstrende Nord-Atlanteren er avgjørende for Norden, og gir oksygen, mat, ressurser og klimastabilitet. Imidlertid har menneskelige aktiviteter og klimaendringer de siste tiårene truet våre hav. 

I denne sammenhengen, ved å bruke sjøpattedyr som ambassadører for havet har GUARDNA-prosjektet som mål å utdanne nordisk ungdom (7-20 år) og om havbevaring og styrke dem som «blå allierte». 

Prosjektet tar sikte på å lage undervisningsmateriell, inkludert informasjonskort, praktiske aktiviteter og muligheter for engasjement i forskning, fokusert på sjøpattedyr, trusler de står overfor og brukernes roller og ansvar. Målet er å engasjere studenter og øke bevisstheten om utfordringene som det bredere marine økosystemet gjennomgår og forstå de ulike realitetene i regionen. 

For å sikre tilgjengelighet vil GUARDNAs undervisningsmateriell bli skreddersydd til fire aldersgrupper på syv forskjellige språk (dansk, engelsk, færøysk, grønlandsk, islandsk, nordsamisk og norsk) for å tilby kvalitetsressurser til ungdommene over Nord-Atlanteren på deres morsmål. Det endelige målet til GUARDNA er å utstyre neste generasjon med kunnskap og miljøbevissthet, fremme en samarbeidende nordatlantisk region og skape en kollektiv forpliktelse for å bevare og bærekraftig bruk av havene.

HOVEDPARTNER

NAMMCO-North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission, Norge, Naima El bani Altuna, naima@nammco.org

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Institut for Læring, Grønlands Universitet

Faroese educational publisher NÁM

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:
DKK 696.785

The main objective of this project is to develop new and innovative products of traditional salt-cured and clipfish based on knowledge exchange and new information regarding processing, recipes, consumer, and market preferences. 

These products are important for the Nordic region, however both consumption and profit from the tradition products can be improved. The project aims to increase the degree of national processing by developing new
or improved, high value and more consumer-friendly easy-to-use products. New recipes, increased processing and product development will also give the products added value.

Iceland, The Faroe Island and Costal Norway have a long history and extensive experience concerning processing of traditional products. However, consumption among young people is low, products are inconvenient and there is a need for more detailed and updated consumer knowledge in order to offer new, more processed ready-to-eat products with high acceptance. 

The project will facilitate sharing of this essential knowledge across the Nordic region. The different producers in the region are to some degree competitors regarding salted and dried salted whole products (fillets and butterfly-cut). The industry is also in general more volume orientated than value. For more processed products, the focus will be more of the opposite, where each producer most likely will target different markets and in smaller volumes. Therefore, a strategy of cooperation instead of competition, seems more fruitful for the Nordic partners in this project in order to achieve the goals. 

Since the competition will be minor, there is a significant advantage connected to sharing information. The cooperation will result in a more efficient product and process development, than carrying out these time- and cost-intensive innovations in parallel actions separately in each region. For restaurants and Tourist operators, new dishes and products can be offered as well as the history and utilization of these important traditional products are held alive. For the research institutes the objective will be to generate new and updated consumer data and improve industry knowledge and contacts. This is important when both basic and applied research is carried out.

This project is co-finansed from NORA.

https://nora.fo/projects/project/325?_l=no

https://matis.is/en/matis_projects/trendy-cod-saltfiskkraesingar/

HOVEDPARTNER

Matís, Island, Kolbrún Sveinsdóttir, kolbrun@matis.is

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Brødrene Sperre Ellingsøyveien, Ellingsøy, Norway 

Inger-Marie Sperre inger@sperrefish.com

iNOVA, Faroe Islands, Janus Vang jv@inova.fo

DRYTECH, Tromsø, Norway 

Tormod Ingebrigtsen, tormod@drytech.no

Atlanterhavsparken, Ålesund, Norway 

Ole Christian Skogen, ole@atlanterhavsparken.no

Destinasjon Ålesund & Sunnmøre, Ålesund, Norway 

Oddhild Breivik oddhild.breivik@visitalesund.com, Reykjavík, Island

Viðar Engilbertsson, vidar@sfs.is, Institute for Tourism, Iceland 

Þórir Erlingsson thorire@keilir.net, Island

Sigurður Daði Friðriksson, sidurdur.dadi.fridriksson@mk.is

Durita í Grótinum, Faroe Islands, durita@jfk.fo

Jens Kristian, Rasmussenjkr@vadhorn.fo

Visit Faroe Islands, Torshavn, Faroe Islands 

Susanna E Sørensen, susanna@visitfaroeislands.com

Master Chef SKRIVASTOVA & KØK Faroe Islands

Gutti wither gutti_winther@hotmail.com

Master Chef Sigmundurgøta, Torshavn, Faroe Islands 

Leif Sørensen leifso@mail.fo

Grimur Kokkur, Vestmannaeyjar, Iceland 

Grímur Gíslason grimurkokkur@grimurkokkur.is

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:
DKK 500.000

The project focused on exploring the largely unstudied seafloor environment of northern Melville Bay, Greenland, to enhance the understanding of marine resources and support sustainable fisheries manage- ment. Utilizing high-resolution sonar technology and multidisciplinary approach, the research aimed to map benthic habitats, assess biodiversity, and analyse the ecological dynamics of this critical area.

Key activities included an 8-day research cruise on the RV Tarajoq, where data on seafloor geology, biodi- versity, and physical oceanography were collected. The project successfully identified diverse benthic eco- systems and established a comprehensive habitat model, highlighting the importance of complex glacial topography in promoting biodiversity.

The findings have significant value for the annual assessments on fishery resources to the Government of Greenland contributing to sustainable fisheries management, as well as provide unique data on Vulnerable Marine Ecosystem areas for marine conservation. Results are and will continue being shared with the scien- tific community, local authorities, and industry stakeholders on the newly explored Arctic benthic habitats. The project also fostered Nordic collaboration among experts from Greenland, Denmark, Norway, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, and the UK, strengthening professional partnerships in marine research. Ultimately, this project supports the sustainable use of marine resources in harmony with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 14: Life Below Water.

Scientific publication: Batchelor et al. 2024: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti- cle/pii/S0025322724001592

GINR news article about the cruise: https://natur.gl/year/2023/undersoegelser-i-melville-bugten-gen- nemfoeres/

GINR news article about the project results: https://natur.gl/year/2024/indlandsisen-har-vaeret-langt- stoerre-end-forventet/

KNR radio interview (https://knr.gl/da/nyheder/forskere-ville-undersoege-bugt-men-endte-med-en-helt- anden-opdagelse )

Conferences: European Geophysical Union congress in Vienna 2024; Conference on climate research, ma- rine environment and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development in Nuuk 2024 (Conference on climate research, marine environment and the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development | Danish Meteorological Institute (nemtilmeld.dk)

Workshop in Nuuk: ‘Exchange of knowledge on seabed mapping across Nordic boundaries’ – social media posts.

HOVEDPARTNER

Grønlands Naturinstitut, Diana Wioletta Krawczyk,  dikr@natur.ql

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Greenland / Greenland Institute of Natural Resources:

• Diana Krawczyk
• AnnDorte Burmeister
• Nadescha Zwerschke
• Sandra Meier
• Tobias Vonnahme
• Uiloq Kleist
• Daniel Esteves-Barcia
• Cruise technicians

Denmark / Technical University of Denmark:

• Jesper Boje

Denmark / University of Southern Denmark

• Jenny Stefansdottir

Norway / Institute of Marine Research:

• Lis Lindal Jørgensen
• Heidi Gabrielsen
• Katherine Dunlop
• Tina Kutti

Norway / The Arctic University of Norway

• Bodil Bluhm –> Irina Zhulay

Iceland / Marine and Freshwater Research Institute:

• Steinunn Hilma Olafsdottir
• Laure de Montety
• Julian Burgos

Iceland / University Centre of Westfjords (Costal Management Master program):

• Joyce Mulder
• Orla Mallon

Faroe Islands / Faroe Islands National Museum:

• Áki Vang

UK / British Antarctic Survey

• Chester Sands

UK / Zoological Society of London

• Chris Yesson

UK / Newcastle University

• Christine Batchelor

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:
DKK 640.000

Prosjektets hovedmål er økt tverretatlig nordisk samarbeid mot fiskerikriminalitet.

Med et slikt mål så bidrar prosjektet til å støtte opp om den nordiske ministererklæringen og de nordiske
myndigheters behov som er identifisert gjennom NA-FIG aktiviteter siden 2015.

I Ålesund den 28. Juni 2017 vedtok MR-FJLS en ministerdeklarasjon om grensekryssende kriminalitet i fiskerinæringen i Norden. Deklarasjonen erkjenner at fiskeindustrien i Norden er globalisert og er avhengig av å kunne konkurrere i et «rettferdig» globalt marked samt at den støtter opp om nordisk samarbeid for å møte utfordringene med organisert kriminalitet i fiskeindustrien. Kjernen i deklarasjonen er behovet for tverretatlig nordisk samarbeid mot fiskerikriminalitet.

Denne deklarasjonen støtter opp om den felles statsministeruttalelsen om å forbedre miljøtilstanden i havområdene i Norden og fremme grønn omstilling som ble vedtatt 15. august 2022. I statsministeruttalelsen pekes det på at de nordiske landene skal samarbeide om å fremme en bærekraftig havøknomi og grønn omstilling som er både inkluderende og «rettferdig».

Etter vedtakelsen av Ålesunddeklarasjonen har Nordisk ministerråd finansiert flere prosjekter som omhandler denne tematikken – og da særlig med et internasjonalt fokus. En viktig partner i dette arbeidet er den Nordatlantiske fiskerietterretningsgruppen (NA-fig) som de nordiske landene er en del av. 

Dette prosjekt er spesifikt rettet mot Norden og har som formål å følge opp Ålesund-deklarasjonen fra 2017 med mål om å styrke det nordiske samarbeidet på dette feltet.

https://bluejustice.org/

HOVEDPARTNER

North Atlantic Fisheries Intelligence Group (NA-FIG), Sølvi Åmo Albrigtsen, solvi.albrigtsen@skatteetaten.no

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Pia Langgaard, TOLL, Danmark
Pia Ovik, Hav og Vatten, Sverige

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:
DKK 900.000

Innovation in electronic surveillance and data gathering in fisheries management promoting sustainability  

This project was a continuation of the former project ‘Fiskerikontrol (2022)’.

In the area of information exchange between fisheries administrations, a need has been identified for standardizing reports between countries on the landings of vessels when the catch stems from other areas than the flag state’s EEZ. The project has produced such a standard and protocol.

Regarding remote monitoring, it is considered extremely interesting to look at the synergistic effects of analyzing fishing activities with satellite images along with the use of drones. The aim is to determine how these technologies can best be used together to intervene in illegal fishing. This technology also offers great potential in the analysis of fisheries in developing countries.

In the field of statistical analysis of data on fisheries when making decisions on monitoring and control, it is believed that each country can learn a lot from the others and that the group intends to develop joint methods in the field.

Compliance by design architectures is an area where monitoring of fishing is built into the information systems of fishing vessels, thereby making monitoring more automatic and comprehensive than other methods. The Norwegians are at the forefront in this field and all the participating countries are very interested in keeping up with developments and laying a foundation for joint ventures in this area.

The management of fisheries in the North Atlantic is good in comparison with the management of most other areas, and the nations responsible for fishing there want to be at the forefront of sustainable utilization and good management and control of fisheries. The main goal of the project is to increase cooperation and coordination in the development of innovations in electronic monitoring. In this way, the intention is to set a model for other nations that can be promoted and utilized internationally.

The project aimed to promote innovation that would lead to sustainability in utilisation and increased value creation from fish stocks in the North Atlantic. The intention was to develop and improve working methods and technological solutions that can be utilized by other fishing nations, as well as strengthen cooperation between nations that fish in the North Atlantic.

http://htt ps://isIand.is/s/fiskistofa /frett/samstarfsverkefni-um-t hroun-eft iriits-med-fiskveidum

https://www.fiskeridir.no/English/Fisheries/the-catchid-program

HOVEDPARTNER

Fiskistofa, Islands fiskeridirektorat, Þorsteinn Hilmarsson, thorsteinn.hilmarsson@fiskistofa.is,

Njáll Ragnarsson, Njall.Ragnarsson@fiskistofa.is

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Grønlands selvstyre: Mads Rossing Lund

Fiskeridirektoratet i Norge: Ole Høstmark

Vørn í Færøerne: Petur Meinhard Jacobsen

Fisheries and Oceans Canada: Sean Wheeler og Dion Browne

Hav och vatten Sverige: Anders Bogelius

Dept. For Environment, Food and Rural Affairs UK: Elinor Brett

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:
DKK 647.190

Collaboration between “Sustainable Network” and “NovasArc” on VME distribution and vulnerability information, and fishing fleet certification

Since 2022 the project “Sustainable Network” (a network of organizations) has operates to support sustainable fisheries with the main goal of using the best practices to evaluate fisheries in Iceland, Faroes, Norway and Greenland for the MSC certification process. From 2016 to 2024, scientists from the Marine Research Institutes in Norway, Iceland, and the Faroes, have collaborated to document VMEs in national waters in the project “NovasArc“ https://pub.norden.org/temanord2023-527/index.html (funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers). The aim has been on models and to predict present and future distribution of VMEs in the Nordic seas and impact from fisheries.  Since 2023 these two groups have been collaborating in the project “Sufi-Nova”.

The main goal of the project “Sufi-Nova” is to support communication between Fisheries and Science. An important objective for the project is to arrange a set of workshops/symposia to support communication between the main stakeholders in relation to sustainable fisheries. 

A symposium with the title “Knowledge for sustainable fisheries” will held at the Institute of Marine Research in Bergen onthe 13-14^th. November 2024.

We hope that the Bergen symposium on Knowledge for Sustainable fisheries will broaden the forum for knowledge exchange to including management entities, fishermen organisations, scientists, and NGOs on present views on best practice for fisheries in the Nordic seas.

HOVEDPARTNER:

Marine and Freshwater Research Institute, Iceland, Steinunn H. Ólafsdóttir, 

steinunn.hilma.olafsdottir@hafogvatn.is

ANDRE PARTNERE:

Julian M. Burgos, Marine and Freshwater Research Institute, Iceland
Kristinn Hjálmarsson, Icelandic Sustainable Fisheries
Petur Steingrund, Havstovan, Faroe Islands
Lis Mortensen, Jardfengi, Faroe Islands
Durita i Grótinum, Faroe Islands Sustainable Fisheries
Nadescha Zwerschke, Greenlandic Institute of Natural Resources
Lene Buhl-Mortensen, Pål Buhl-Mortensen, Institute of Marine Research, Norway
Tor Björklund Larsen, Norges Fiskarlag
Kristina Guldbæk, Polar Seafood Greenland
Lisbeth Schoenemann-Paul, Royal Greenland
Sofia Smedegaard Mathiesen, Henrik Lund, Danmarks Fiskeriforening

Støtte fra AG-Fisk:
DKK 900.000