LOCAL fishermen say they may need States help in order for the industry to survive. At least one boat is up for sale on the quay and many of Guernsey’s fishermen are turning to shore-based jobs to pay bills.
Full-time fisherman Francois de Garis, 38 (pictured), said with rising fuel costs and dwindling supplies, things were tough in one of Guernsey’s oldest industries.
‘I would like to see some kind of support, because it is a struggle at the moment. The price of fuel is affecting us. It is very difficult because we can’t pass the cost on,’ said Mr de Garis.
They have seen a weekly increase of more than £600 on fuel. ‘At the end of the week, that money is coming out of our pockets,’ he said.
Mr de Garis works on a trawler which goes out for two to three or three to four days at a time.
‘We are constantly on the move, from the moment we leave the harbour to when we get back,’ he said.
He said this was also the worst time of the year for sales because fish was plentiful and supermarkets and restaurants were being offered stock from part-time fishermen as well as those earning a living from it.
‘We are the ones losing out.’
He said the time had come for some form of States-subsidised funding for the industry.
‘I don’t know how they would go about it, but anything would help – this is a long-term problem,’ he said.
One fisherman, who wanted to remain anonymous, said States members knew nothing about the difficulties that people in the industry faced.
‘At least they have people who worked as hoteliers running tourism.
‘[Chief Minister] Lyndon Trott is the only one who knows anything about fishing first-hand,’ said the fisherman, who has worked in the industry for 20 years, over which time he has seen the fishing community dwindle.
‘I’m struggling to survive, to make a living and I’m not the only one. Some have got to the point where it’s just not worth carrying on,
‘It used to be a big industry but I don’t think it will ever get back to that,’ he said.
The problem for the fishermen, he said, was that the price they received for fish had not gone up in 20 yearsbut that others were benefiting.
He said people in the industry were turning to shore work because the price of fish was so poor for them, compared to what the supermarkets were selling it for.
A typical price for a pollack he would sell would be £1.22, but it was sold in supermarkets as fillets for £10 per kilo.
‘We are at the bottom-end of the food chain. The cost of living has gone up so much and it’s becoming a real struggle.
‘People are packing it in,’ he said.
As the owner of one of the smaller boats, the fuel price increase had not hit him as hard as others, he said, but it all added up.
‘It’s probably costing me an extra £15 a week. However, with the extra cost of petrol in the van, it is about £25 a week,’ he said.
He said some form of States loan scheme, via Sea Fisheries, could work, enabling full-time fishermen to carry out essential maintenance and upgrading work.
‘I don’t know what the answer is, but maybe it is time the States started helping us out.’
Article posted on 7th July, 2008 - 2.29pm
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One Article Comment
Having been involved in the fishing industry for some 30 years i feel the need to reply to your article ‘Without backing we are finished’.
I along with many others feel that the industry should be left to look after itself, economic changes affect all industries at some time and it is imperative that they are not propped up in any way and simply left to adapt where necessary.
From the article we are given the impression that we will have no industry at all should no assistance be forthcoming but this is far from the case. Economies of scale will ensure we will always have fresh local fish although they may not be caught by a fleet of large (heavy fuel using) vessels but by smaller one man boats who will always continue to make their living from the sea. How about our taxi drivers,plant operators? the list of heavy fuel users is endless unyet we are portrayed as an industry expecting help.
The role of our Government is NOT to provide anybody with a living nor subsidise it, and in this respect i am somewhat suprised at Deputy Jone’s comments.
States of Guernsey concentrate on the important matters and leave people stand on their own two feet - our fisherman are adaptable by nature and our industry will survive in one form or another.