March 15, 2007

UK's Ducktrap continues to tap US market even under new ownership

The merger between Fjord Seafood and Norway's Marine Harvest did not result in significant changes for subsidiaries but has improved long term prospects as the new affiliates can provide more fish for processing, said Don Cynewski general manager of the Ducktrap facility in Belfast.

Ducktrap is a subsidiary of Fjord seafood before its parent company was bought over by Marine Harvest to form one of the largest aquaculture companies in the world.

Ducktrap would remain the new entity's top-of-the-line brand in the United States, Cynewski said. Ducktrap products, including smoked trout, salmon and mussels, are sold throughout the country with a major focus on high-end markets in the East.

Ducktrap continues to get most of its raw product from Chile for processing, Cynewski said.

Pan Fish has smokehouses in France but does not sell in the US while Marine Harvest is one of the largest salmon raisers in Europe.

Ducktrap was set up in the 1970s and grew quickly to become a leading processor of salmon.