EU Fisheries Commissioner Joe Borg and Abraham Iyambo, Namibia’s Minister for Fisheries and Natural Resources, share this year’s Kungsfenan The Swedish Seafood Award in the Sustainable Fishing category.
Dr. Borg was lauded for being “able to handle short term interests in relation to more long term ones with great personal integrity”. “His work has enormous potential to create a trustworthy, sustainable fishing policy”, the citation added.
Dr. Iyambo received the prize for having “established an effective, research based administration within a short timeframe in Namibia”.
The award was introduced in 2001 on the initiative of the County Administrative Board for Västra Götaland, with the responsibility for the administration of the award given to the trade association Svensk Fisk. According to the organisers, it aims to be “the world’s most well- renowned fish award”.
The prize sum of 400,000 Skr (€38,000) is split between two categories, ’Sustainable Fishing’ and ’Maritime Gastronomy’. The jury, consisting of prominent government officials, environmentalists, trade representatives and restaurateurs, gave the 2009 Kungsfenan (“King Fin”) to the French chef Paul Bocuse, for “his exceptional efforts in promoting fish gastronomy in his cookery competition, the Bocuse d’Or”.