After a week on the road in North Iceland, the 2026-27 fellows returned to Reykjavík in early October with fresh perspectives on the people, communities and industries that shape Icelandic fisheries.
Actually, only those participating in the Stock Assessment and Sustainable Aquaculture lines returned. Those on the Fisheries Policy and Management line remained in in the north, where they will be hosted by the University of Akureyri (UNAK).
The trip began at UNAK, where lecturers from the university and specialists from the Directorate of Fisheries introduced the fellows to the Icelandic fisheries management system, its historical roots and the impact it has had on the sector and wider society.
They touched on the gradual introduction of the so-called “quota system”, increasing specialisation within the sector, new approaches to value creation, the emergence of fish auctions and the continuing debate about who benefits from all the changes.
With fellows working in fisheries, aquaculture, research and management across a wide range of countries, the sessions also provided an opportunity to compare Iceland's experience with their own.
The following days took the group to Siglufjörður, Dalvík, Húsavík and the Mývatn area.
Adapting to Change
In Siglufjörður, the morning began at a shrimp processing company. The visit provided one example of how a community responded when circumstances changed. Established after the collapse of the herring industry, the factory became part of a broader effort to create new economic activity around different marine resources.
The story did not end with shrimp processing. Parts of the shrimp that once would largely have been treated as waste now provide raw material for local biotechnology companies producing ingredients used in products ranging from medical materials to cosmetics and nutritional supplements.
Later, at the Herring Museum, the town's history came into focus. For a time, herring brought jobs, investment and people to Siglufjörður in large numbers. Then the herring disappeared in the late 1960s. Processing plants closed, jobs vanished and the community was forced to rethink its future.
Seen against this backdrop, the discussions at the University of Akureyri acquired additional context. The quota system appeared less as a single policy choice and more as part of a longer process of adaptation shaped by experience
Interestingly, the museum itself has now become part of Siglufjörður's adaptation story, turning the memory of a lost industry into one of the town's most important attractions and helping create a different kind of economy around it.
The missing fish
Dalvík offered a different perspective.
Visits to seafood companies showed an industry focused not only on harvesting fish but on product quality, specialisation and logistics.
The local fish auction proved particularly memorable.
Many fellows probably expected to find a selection of Iceland’s most common fish species and a bustling auction floor filled with buyers bidding on the day’s catch.
Instead, they were greeted by a pleasant office setting, complete with desks, kitchen facilities, a snooker table, and an auction clock running on a computer screen.
Where was the fish?
The answer to this question revealed a lot about the Icelandic fisheries sector, where fish can be bought and sold through the auctions, even before a buyer sees it.
As it turned out, the catch traded through the market that day had already been sold. It would be landed later in the afternoon and, once weighed, transported directly to a buyer elsewhere in the country for processing and export.
Together with improvements in information systems, transport and fish handling procedures, the fish auction markets which emerged in Iceland alongside the quota system have helped to connect vessels, buyers and processors through a more transparent and competitive marketplace.
The fisheries sector's impact on Dalvík extended beyond harvesting and processing. A local company which manufactures insulated fish tubs for the food industry, provided a reminder of the diverse businesses and specialised services that grow around a successful fisheries cluster.
An unexpected companion
Travelling between towns, the contrasts were often difficult to miss.
Some communities had benefited from new investment, growing businesses and improved connections to larger regional centres. Others were still adapting to the loss of fishing activity and employment that had once sustained them. The benefits and costs of change had clearly not been distributed evenly.
Each evening, fellows took turns preparing meals from their home countries in the hostel kitchen. Conversations wandered between fisheries, food, politics and everyday life.
Soon, a recurring topic had become impossible to miss: “The quota system.” It appeared in lectures, company visits, museum exhibits and stories about communities.
And before long it started appearing in other more unlikely circumstances. Lunch breaks, dinner budgets, sleeping hours and even seats around a table occasionally found themselves subjected to mock quota management.
The humour was light-hearted, but it reflected something real: In Iceland, it rarely took long for a conversation about fisheries, communities or regional development to circle back to the “quota” element of the fisheries management system.
The final days of the trip brought the group from Akureyri to Húsavík, Lake Mývatn and Goðafoss. There were visits to seafood companies, a whale museum, a shipyard, and a traditional fish smokehouse.
By then, the week had produced a collection of stories, observations and conversations, many of which had seemed unrelated at first.
Looking back, the “missing fish” at the auction market in Dalvík turned out to be only one piece of a larger picture which was starting to come together.
The GRÓ Fisheries Training Programme gratefully acknowledges all organisations, companies and individuals who welcomed the fellows, shared their time and knowledge and contributed to the success of the 2026 Northern Trip.