Polar Seafood is a key supplier of Northeast Atlantic herring. Herring is caught in large quantities using the environmentally friendly purse seines or pelagic (midwater) trawl.
The Atlantic herring is one of the most abundant fish species in the world. It can grow up to 45 centimetres in length and moves in large shoals of up to 4 cubic kilometres, comprising of up to 4 billion fish. They feed on copepods, krill and small fish, and their natural predators are seals, whales, cod and larger fish. Several nations take part in the herring fishery in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean and consequently the stocks are all monitored and managed internationally via NEAFC (North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission). The herring stocks are subject to annual surveys via ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea).
The Atlantic herring is widely distributed in the Northwest and Northeast Atlantic seas. The Atlanto-Scandian herring disperses widely over the abyssal plains during feeding migrations to Norway, Iceland and Greenland.
Polar Seafood is a prominent player in the relatively new mackerel fishery in Greenland. This species is caught in large quantities using purse seines and large pelagic trawls. Having no swim bladder, even dense shoals do not show up on echo sounders. Some fishermen refer to the mackerel fishing as being rather more of a hunt than regular fishing. Pelagic fishing gear is recognised as environmentally friendly.
The mackerel is a highly streamlined, fast swimming pelagic fish, widespread in the North Atlantic seas and usually found at depths of less than 200 metres. The mackerel is a classic shoaling fish, with shoals up to 9 km long, 4 km wide and 40 m deep. Mackerel feed on a variety of pelagic crustaceans and small fish, including herring, sprat and sand eel.
Being highly migratory, the hunt for food takes the mackerel through several economic zones. Hence, several nations take part in the fishery for mackerel in the North Atlantic ocean and consequently the stocks are all monitored and managed internationally via NEAFC (North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission). Increasing surface temperatures in the area between Greenland and Iceland has contributed positively to Greenland’s efforts to achieve recognition as a “coastal state” in the mackerel quota distribution.
With its head office in Nuuk Greenland, Polar Seafood is the largest
privately owned fishing company operating in Greenland.
Polar Seafood is one of Scandinavia's key suppliers of a wide range of seafood products suitable for processors,
wholesalers, caterers and retail customers. Cold-water prawns, Greenland halibut, redfish, cod etc. are caught by
Polar Seafood's own modern trawler fleet.
Our processing factories in Greenland and Denmark are Higher Level BRC.
Polar Seafood Greenland A/S was established in 1984 as the sales and marketing company for a number of independently owned Greenlandic prawn trawlers. Today, Polar Seafood is one of the top seafood exporters in Scandinavia and the largest privately owned company in Greenland.
Polar Seafood
Baldrianvej 2
DK-9310 Vodskov
Phone: +45 98 29 44 22
E-mail: polar@polarseafood.dk
Or find your local office here
