Well, just when we thought we had come to the end of our mackerel season, we got a surprise visit from the Faroese vessel, Christian i Grotinum, with some 455g average mackerel! This was a very welcome addition to an already successful season.

Our autumn mackerel season has lasted a few days longer than expected. We have been very pleased with the results in October, with a higher than expected volume of top quality fish to process.

The factory has maintained full production since our season began on 4th October, with a landing from the King's Cross. We processed all her mackerel quota as well as the majority of the Shetland quota. We also secured the majority of the mackerel from another of our Scottish suppliers, Enterprise. Towards the end of the season we had regular landings from Irish vessels such as Western Viking, Western Chieftain & Western Endeavour.

Average sizes for the season began at 470-500g, with the fish being caught mainly about 10-20 miles north of Muckle Flugga (the northernmost point of Shetland). The fishing area towards the end of the season was about 80 miles east of Shetland and the average size of fish being about 420-440g.

We have been selling & shipping the fish as fast as possible to make space for more landings. Our experienced sales team have been very busy arranging sales from our stock in Shetland as well as from stocks held in external cold stores throughout Europe. Please feel free to discuss your requirements with a member of the sales team: sales@shetlandcatch.com.