16th November 2010:
The high-achieving participants included Colin Whooley, Whooley Seafood, Michael & Coleman Keohane, Keohane’s Seafood, Michael Desmond, Fresh Quality Fish, Dominic Casey, Casey’s of Baltimore, John Kearney, Fastnet Catch, Mike Murphy, Sullmar Fish Ltd, John Murphy, Fastnet Mussels, Sean & Lisa O’ Sullivan, Cisemair Fisheries Ltd., and Michael Walsh, Scally’s SuperValu Clonakilty. Each reached outstanding levels of innovation and creativity in meeting the high demands of today’s seafood marketplace and will now have the opportunity to showcase new seafood products which they have developed as a result of their involvement in the programme.
Michael Hanley, CEO at West Cork Enterprise Board (WCEB), said that the conclusion of the BIM/WCEB Seafood Business Development Programme 2010, is the culmination of ten months of extremely hard work for all those involved:
“The dedication of all involved in this project has been incredible. Most of these participants have fulltime jobs within the seafood sector, so committing to ten months of intensive training and mentoring has required enormous effort. The creativity and innovation displayed by each entrepreneur has been exceptional. It is very exciting to see participants, who began the course with semi-formed ideas for new products, work through the various stages of product development, market research and packaging design.
After nearly a year of training and mentoring, most of these seafood professionals now have products that are ready to launch onto the Irish and European market. Some of these ‘value-added’ products, such as prepared seafood dishes, will be very attractive to retailers and distributors in Ireland, continental Europe and further afield. I would envisage that several of the participants from the 2010 course will go on to secure lucrative export contracts, as has been the case with many of the West Cork seafood businesses that BIM and the West Cork Enterprise Board have worked with in recent years”.
Michael Keohane of Keohane’s Seafood, Bantry, who took part in the development programme believes said “The programme gave us the unique opportunity to network with other seafood business owners and learn from others’ experiences, while the mentoring sessions meant we all received specific advice about developing aspects of our business and marketing plans that we might otherwise have struggled with.
It was particularly beneficial to travel to the European Seafood exhibition to get a better insight into the latest market trends and developments in innovative packaging solutions. After this programme, I feel exceptionally well-placed to capitalise on emerging market opportunities, both within Ireland and across the rest of Europe.”
Also speaking about the programme, Dr. Susan Steele, Innovation Co-ordinator, BIM Seafood Development Centre, Clonakilty said “2011 is set to be a challenging year for all of us in the Irish seafood sector and the economy as a whole. However with challenges come opportunities, especially for dynamic businesses. By focusing on their strategic business planning and continuing to innovate, seafood businesses can harness the distinct competitive advantage which tailor-made professional development programmes such as this can offer. Developing value added seafood products and new product ranges to target specific markets is vital to ensure the seafood sector is well-placed to continue providing Ireland’s coastal communities with employment and wealth-creation opportunities now and in the future.”