‘Partnerships with overseas retailers critical in helping fishing industry’

Partnerships with overseas retail groups will be critical in helping Ireland’s fishing industry develop new international markets, says one fishing sector leader.

Castletownbere Fishermen’s Co-op is three years into its supply arrangement with Mercadona. It has recently signed a contract to supply 2,000 tonnes of whitefish annually to the Spanish supermarket chain, a €10m deal which directly supports 35 of its 80 local processing plant jobs.

The Mercadona contract offers stability to the 280 workers on board the West Cork co-op’s own fleet of 40 boats, plus huge numbers of others in indirect local employment. That stability is critical to both Mercadona and the local Castletownbere community.