National Fisheries Plan
Australia’s first National Fisheries Plan is expected to be released in February 2022 after extensive public consultation on the draft plan in September and October 2021.
The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment received 73 responses, including 23 formal submissions, to the public consultation process. Development of the plan is part of a 2019 Australian Government commitment to work with the Indigenous, commercial, recreational, aquaculture and post-harvest sectors.
The National Fisheries Plan aims to provide a shared vision and strategic framework to prioritise actions and enhance collaboration among Australian governments to drive sustainable growth of the Australian fishing and seafood community. It incorporates eight focus areas including employment and health, Indigenous opportunity, sustainability and adaptation to a changing environment.
What if you don’t come home?
On World Fisheries Day on 21 November 2021, SeSAFE took the opportunity to shine the spotlight on safety on the water with a promotional video and a number of social media and industry messages highlighting how a well-trained crew is a safe crew who will come home.
The video powerfully conveys how every skipper’s main responsibility is the safety of their crew and how everyone working on the water must be knowledgeable about safety.
The SeSAFE project is partially funded by the FRDC and has been running since 2018, delivering readily accessible and convenient safety training. This makes it easy to learn safety best practices and implement them daily, massively improving the safety of one of Australia’s most dangerous occupations. Watch the video ‘Safety is no accident – a message from Australian fishers and SeSAFE’ on Vimeo.
Share your favourite apps
Members of the ‘National Seafood Industry Leadership Program’ (NSILP) are keen to hear about your favourite fisheries-related apps and what makes them work well. The survey is part of an NSILP team project for members of the NSILP’s Port Lincoln cohort: Jaime McAllister, Luke Cordwell and Cassandra Pert.
Early suggestions of favourite apps include those for sea forecasts used before heading out fishing (RipCharts), logging commercial catches (the FisherMobile app connected to NSW FishOnline system), or checking on the sustainability of a fish before buying dinner (SAFS Sustainable Fish Stocks).
The team says while the adoption of new digital tools, including apps, presents a significant opportunity for the seafood sector, it is concerned apps offering great benefits could be lost among competing programs.
It aims to shine a light on the range of apps available and suited to different parts of the seafood sector and how these apps can be integrated into everyday activities. The group also wants to learn what makes a good fishing app and why many apps remain ‘on the shelf’, despite the best intentions of their developers.
Get in quickly to vote for Australia’s Greatest Fish and Chips
The Great Australian Fish and Chip Awards 2021, organised by Seafood Industry Australia (SIA), is underway, searching for the country’s best fish and chip businesses.
“In every town, across every state and territory, people spruik their fish and chips as number one, so let’s put them to the test and crown Australia’s best fish and chipper,” says SIA CEO Veronica Papacosta.
“Voting in the MasterFoods™ People’s Choice Award opened on 19 October and closes on 12 December, so you need to be quick to vote for your favourite. The state and territory winners will be announced at a virtual event on 14 December.
“Consumers can visit Great Australian Fish & Chip Awards and vote for their favourite fish and chip shop to take out the title. If you can’t pick just one store, don’t worry, you can cast a vote each day. There’s even a live leaderboard on the website so you can keep an eye on your favourite store’s position.”
More information: Great Australian Fish & Chip Awards
