Marine Minister Michael Creed has welcomed €3.5 million of new investment in six seafood processing companies.
Announcing the funding yesterday, Thursday 11 June, Minister Creed said: “In these very challenging times for business generally and notably our seafood sector, I am delighted to support these six companies in building for the future.
“With our own economy and European and world markets reopening, we can have optimism again for future prosperity and growth.”
Carr & Sons in Mayo receives more than €387,000 for an extension to modernise their processing facilities, while Sofrimar in Wexford gets over €562,000 for its automated processing and packing line plans, and Seafood Processors Ltd in Co Louth benefits from €370,000 towards white fish filleting processing technology.
Elsewhere, Good Fish Processing in Co Cork gets €396,000 towards packaging capacity and efficiency, Keohane Seafood also in Cork will improve factory flow, efficiency and sustainability with its €1.44m investment, and the West Cork Export Market Collective (comprising Union Hall Smoked Fish Ltd and Keohane Seafood) receives more than €353,000 for leveraging collaboration to boost export sales.
“These six companies are preparing their businesses to grow exports and value because they have the confidence to know that our seafood sector is a high growth sector and that it will resume its long-term growth pattern now that markets are getting over the recent temporary, albeit severe difficulties,” the minister said.
“The national strategy is to add value wherever possible to our seafood products to ensure those products are well placed in the market. These grants will assist these Irish seafood companies to deliver on that strategy.”
Minister Creed added that his departmets’s present EMFF programme “is ready to assist seafood companies get back to business with capital, innovation, marketing and other supports”.
“From next year, my department’s new EMFF programme for the 2021-27 period will commence and will play a major role in assisting the recovery and renewed growth of our seafood sector,” he said.
Grants of €1,081,192 from the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) programme make up a portion of the total investment. These grants are co-funded by the Government of Ireland and the European Union and are subject to terms and conditions.