The fiftieth anniversary of the Lauwersoog fish auction ended with a director who cut his own budget. “The company is ready for the future, but of course it must still be possible to fish.”
It was make or break. This is how Barbara Holierhoek described the state of affairs in shrimp fishing in September. In the first half of 2023, the sector suffered a loss of seven million euros. The autumn had to make up for a lot, but a big catch was not forthcoming.
Although the prices were high, a discount mainly needs kilos for a good turnover. In Lauwersoog, which celebrated its fiftieth anniversary last year, turnover fell by 35 percent. “In September we already saw that things were no longer going well and we decided to make choices,” says Holierhoek.
The exit cut staff costs and Holierhoek did not spare itself. She left as director. “I am superfluous for controlling the exit. The company is in good financial shape and is ready for the future, but of course it must be possible to fish.”
Aid in Need
Holierhoek has been one of the best-known faces of the northern shrimp fishery for years. From 2012 to 2020, she was chairman of the fishing associations Ons Belang from Harlingen and Hulp in Nood from Zoutkamp. After working as a self-employed person at the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), she became director of the fish auction on January 1, 2021.
“I came to Lauwersoog a lot and after the position had been vacant for five years, the exit wanted a director again.” Holierhoek brought a large network with him, but he said it was not necessarily necessary for the day-to-day management of the exit.
“We have modernized the company. A new auction system has been introduced so that more international buyers can be found. The company can move forward for years to come and the exit was also running well without a director before my appointment.”
New job
After her decision to quit, she found a new job at an old acquaintance, the RVO. This executive body translates laws into implementing rules, among other things. “From this position I would like to support the sector by making rules practically enforceable.”
A number of new rules have been introduced in the sector in recent years, but many more are still being added. “The sector has actually been left relatively alone for a long time and now has to catch up quickly, which means that more demands must be placed on the crews of seagoing vessels in a short time.”
She points to, among other things, a new inspection regulation for equipping cutters with cameras. “This way, in a few years’ time, it will be possible to check what is being caught and brought ashore. Fishing therefore becomes one of the most watched sectors.”
Holierhoek does not find it complicated to work for the government, while this is often the source of all kinds of regulations for the fishing industry. “The control regulation comes from Brussels,” she qualifies. “The people at RVO try to make such rules as workable as possible. I hope to use practical knowledge to indicate what is and is not possible. This regulation is not about reprimanding people, but about registering what is caught and perhaps that will also help to paint a picture of how certain fish species are doing.”
Promotion
De Makkum will start her new job in The Hague on Monday. She especially expects to miss the striking smells of fish and the salty Wadden Sea, but the bond with Lauwersoog will not be broken. “Lauwersoog still has a nice place in my heart and I will remain a director at the Promotion Lauwersoog foundation.”
Bad year
The shrimp fishery has had another bad year. About five million kilograms of shrimp were landed at Dutch fish auctions in 2023. That is six million kilos less than the year before.
In the first half of that year, the sector already suffered a loss of four million euros. This was somewhat compensated for in the autumn, the time when most shrimp are usually caught.
The sector was just breaking even, but that was not an option in 2023. A much larger catch-up had to be made in the autumn because the loss in the first half of the year was three million euros higher. But that big catch didn’t materialize.
The exact figures will be known soon, but according to fish economist Kees Taal it is already clear that 2023 ended with a loss. “It was a really bad year. The volumes were simply too low,” says the researcher from Wageningen University.
Such bad years generally occur more often because the sector is dependent on the capriciousness of nature. It is now particularly bad for shrimp fishing because the prospects for the sector are unfavorable.
To obtain a permit, fishermen must reduce their nitrogen emissions. Much is still unclear about how this can best be done. Some have already invested tens of thousands of euros in a special catalyst. Not every fisherman has a valid permit. This will be tolerated until the end of this year.