Nearly 700 million RUR to support land-based processing

The program aims at stable development of seafood production, larger wages in the province's fish processing sector and bigger number of jobs, reconstruction and refurbishment of fish plants.

The total volume of program financing from 2010 to 2013 amounts to 689 million RUR to be funded by the province's budget.

Implementation of the program is to result into reconstruction of production facilities and equipment refurbishment, expansion of the product range, increase of seafood output to 137,000 tonnes, the average monthly wages to RUR22,000 and the number of jobs to 3500 tonnes.

Background

There are about 100 various fish processing organizations registered in Vladivostok-led Primorye. The figure includes 10 fish canneries. The total workforce amounts to ca.2900 people. High market value of modern fish processing equipment and bank loans' interest rates currently halt the industry development. Now the province has a strong misbalance in sea and land fish processing. Serious problems in land processing include absence of own fishing fleet, dependence on raw fish supplies as well as lack of working capital for raw fish purchases and auxiliary materials.

The support program provides for the financial support of land-based fish processors. Subsidies from the province's budget will partly compensate for the production costs and interest rates. The program will therefore make Primorye the first region where the fish processing activities will be subsidized. Another target of the program is to encourage the nation's fishermen to bring catches to the home shores because now the Russian fish catches are mostly shipped for processing to China or other countries.