Fishing Board in joint venture for squid

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33448, 1 February 1974, Page 3

Fishing Board in joint venture for squid

(X.Z. Press Association) WELLINGTON, January' 31. | New Zealand is to follow the Japanese lead and take up squidfishing early next month, under a joint venture between the Fishing Industry Board and Sealord Products, Ltd, of Nelson. The venture will start off) the West Coast with one vessel, equipped with six SIOOO automatic squid machines and special lighting giving 10,000 watts. The general-manager of the Fishing Industry Board <Mr J. S. Campbell) said in e statement today that the main job of the squid boat will be to prove that squid could be caught in reasonable quantities, and be exported at an economic price. “Few New Zealand fishermen could afford to take the risk of equipping their vessels with $lO,OOO-worth of specialised gear until they are satisfied on these joints,” he said. The vessel to be used in the project will be the Leander, owned by Mr B. J.| Kenton, of Timaru, president! of the Federation of Com-1 raercial Fishermen. The Leander has the necessary power generation and freezer capacity, and a deck Jayoui which is suitable for this type of fishing.

The vessel will be based on Nelson and Westport.

“Once it has been demonstrated that squid can be taught in adequate quan-

tities and handled satisfactorily on the West Coast, consideration will be given, If good catches are achieved by the Japanese vessels on the east coast, to transfer-

ring the project to the east 'coast for a short period,” IMr Campbell said. Mr N. F. Parsons, the board’s technical officer (fishing methods), who has studied squid fishing in Japan, will be the project co-ordinator. He will work closely with the executive staff of Sealord Products. Mr Campbell said the

board wanted to see squid fishing become an important part of the New Zealand fishing industry. The research and exploratory fishing carried out by the Japanese for three years had shown not only that there was an important exploitable resource, but that New Zealand squid was more acceptable in the Japanese market than had appeared originally. This was confirmed by the fact that last year 60 to 70 Japanese vessels caught 14,300 tons of squid in New Zealand waters, and this year 159 Japanese vessels would be fishing round the New Zealand coast, he said.

“We are much more optimistic about our chances of success this year, because of the experience we have gained from our own efforts and from the experience of the Japanese in their first full-scale commercial operations last year,” Mr Campbell said.

During the three years of Japanese exploratory fishing and research Mr R. Saito, the scientist in charge of the investigations, had regularly informed the Fishing Industry Board of his findings, he said.

Japanese squid boat owners had also called on the board in each of the last three years. After discussions with the board in late December Japan had now offered the services of Mr Saito for two weeks in late February or early March. “The Fishing Industry Board has been very pleased to accept this offer of cooperation, whereby Mr Saito will join the combined board and industry project in the Leander.

“In addition, arrangements have been made to enable some New Zealand fishermen nominated by the board to go aboard Japanese squid ves-

seis to learn the Japanese methods,” he said. “Mr Saito knows a great deal about our squid resources, and has always been most helpful to us,” he said. Mr Campbell said he believed Japan would relax its restrictions on purchases of New Zealand squid. “We will thus be able to send some squid into Japan under their import quota system.”