Seafish is a non-departmental public body tasked with supporting the UK seafood industry. Our primary sponsor is Defra although we also work across all the devolved administrations.
The Seafish Board is made up of seafood industry and independent non-executive members. It meets quarterly and is responsible for setting the strategic direction of Seafish and for monitoring and assessing performance. The Board works closely with the Seafish CEO and the Executive team.
We are a small NDPB with 85 staff, but we are the only organisation that operates across the UK and across the seafood supply chain (covering fishing, processing, trading, importing, exporting, retail and foodservice).
Our seven priorities are listed below:
1. Ensuring a safe and skilled workforce. We want the UK seafood sector recognised as a dynamic, safe, and attractive sector to work. We also want to ensure individual businesses have the systems and processes in place to source the labour they need and to provide safe workplaces for all.
2. Facilitating and promoting international trade. We want to support businesses to achieve frictionless seafood trade with suppliers and markets across the world.
3. Responding to the climate change emergency. Over the next five years, we will work to firmly place the seafood sector on a clear path to achieve its emissions targets. We also want to ensure businesses understand how they will need to adapt to the impacts of a changing climate on their daily operations.
4. Improving fisheries management. Our ambition is that over the next ten years all commercial fisheries will be managed via Fisheries Management Plans (FMPs). These will be supported by a robust evidence framework, and provide for genuine co-management between industry, government, and researchers.
5. Enabling supply chain resilience. We aim to equip businesses to respond and adapt when issues emerge, highlighting where change is necessary and creating pre-competitive spaces for businesses to forge solutions and realise opportunities.
6. Improving data, insight, and innovation. Our ambition is to become the centre for analysis and insight on the operation and performance of the seafood supply chain. We also want to coordinate and target innovation investment to find solutions to the real issues facing seafood businesses.
7. Championing Industry Reputation. By actively scanning the landscape for reputational risks to proactively plan responses, we aim to support the industry to tell a positive story about seafood.
These key priorities underpin and inform our work programmes and projects.
The seafood sector is dynamic and challenging in equal measure. There is always something new to discover and no two days are the same. At the same time, it is an industry full of driven and inspiring people with an endless devotion to seafood. As an apprentice to our board, we are sure you will come to enjoy it as much as we do.
We consider this initiative an incredible opportunity to build capability and to create a diverse pool of future non-executive talent that organisations like Seafish can draw on.
Diverse representation is a vital element in any organisation including the seafood sector, and this apprenticeship programme provides significant momentum in that direction. The opportunity to increase diversity across Seafish is also a priority and participating in this initiative in 2023 has been a key step in that journey. Our current board apprentice has made a significant contribution to the board over the last six months, bringing new perspectives and challenging current ways of thinking.. Innovation and creativity are skills that Seafish values highly;on the Board, across the organisation, and throughout the sector.
We welcome the opportunity to continue to support the Boardroom apprenticeship programme.
Location of Board and Committee Meetings
Board meetings are normally held in-person in Grimsby, Edinburgh, London, and one coinciding with a stakeholder visit (Shetland and Peterhead are being considered for 2024). Remuneration Committee (RemCom) meets online. Audit and Risk Committee (ARC) meets online with one face to face meeting per year in Edinburgh.
Frequency and timing of board/committee meetings
Board meetings are held quarterly. The Board convenes the afternoon before the Board meeting for a strategic planning session. The actual Board meeting takes place the following day from 9.30- 2.30pm.
We routinely include stakeholder visits alongside Board meetings – these can be to fish markets, fish processing businesses or retailers.
RemCom and ARC meetings are held quarterly, typically for three hours and take place during office hours.
Date of Board Meetings (January 2024 – December 2024)
18-19 March, 21-23 May, 25-26 September (tbc), 25-26 November (tbc).
Committee of the Boards and meeting dates (January 2024 – December 2024)
ARC (tbc). RemCom (first meeting 21 February;rest of meetings tbc).
