asked the Minister for the Marine the steps, if any, he will take to provide a plant for smoking fish on Dinish Island, Castletownbere, County Cork, to utilise the present glut of herring fillets in the port, rather then consigning it to a fish meal plant.
Written Answers. - Herring Fillets Glut.
101.
While my Department have no direct function in relation to the provision of processing plants, they do, of course, keep in close touch with the other agencies concerned to ensure that all possibilities for economically processing fish are fully examined. A number of possibilities for additional fish processing in the south-west are currently under review and the situation in relation to herring processing will be kept in mind in this context.
The current situation regarding herring fillets is due, I am informed, to marketing conditions being weak due to heavy supplies being available, both at home and abroad especially from Scandinavian sources. However, there are now I understand some signs of improvement in the market for herring in Western Europe as the volume of landings generally eases.