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 News ***** JFC is Seeking Dealers and Agents for its Top-Quality Marine Products
15th March 2007
Are you an experienced marketer of marine and aquaculture products who is looking to add a top-quality range to your portfolio?
If so, JFC wants to hear from you! We are looking for partners throughout the globe to serve as agents and dealers for the top-quality range of marine products that we manufacture. Our portfolio includes an impressive range of patented-designed mussel floats and navigation buoys. We also supply a range of navigation accessories in addition to abalone farming systems, a range that we will be expanding significantly in the coming months. Please contact us at info@jfcmarine.com for further information.
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Inshore Ireland Article - March 2007 Issue 30% Crop Increase with new Irish Mussel Farming System
By: Tom Gilmore
IRELAND is moving to the forefront in making mussel production more profitable with the introduction of the revolutionary new JFC Sub-aqua float which can increase yields by as much as 30%.
Traditionally the mussel farm industry used barrels to grow the shellfish but this system may soon become outdated following the development of this new product by JFC Plastic Manufacturing Company in Tuam, Co. Galway. The firm have designed a float which can withstand the pressures of high waves and which will sit steadily on the water when loaded with a full crop of mussels. Up to now one major, and very costly, problem with the old system using the barrels is that when the crop is mature they are so heavy that in a storm the floats often sink or break up and the complete crop can be lost. It is not unusual for a mussel farmer to loose a complete crop costing as much as €150,000 in one stormy night.
The JFC Sub-aqua float has a patent stabilising ring around the side of it to stop it from bobbling up and down in the water. This will stop the mussel holding lines from brushing up and down and stops the crop from falling back into the sea. "We have made a major breakthrough in the Fish Farming industry with a quality designed product which will solve many problems for producers," says John Concannon Managing Director of JFC. "The stabilising ring will ensure better buoyancy and less chance of the mussel getting traumatised while growing." "In order to grow fast the mussel needs to be in a relaxed state while growing and the tests that have been carried out show a production tonnage increase of up to 30%," he added.
The new JFC float is the result of collaboration involving the dedicated Research and Development team at JFC Tuam and many people in the industry including Danny McNulty from Achill and Noel McGreal from Castlebar. It has taken three years of research and trials for the company to come up with what the JFC organisation claim is a better quality float than anything on the market. The trials to date have taken place here in Clew Bay in Mayo (Danny McNulty), along the coast of Donegal (Hugh Wilhare and John McClusky) and in Bantry Bay (Ger Hanley of Bantry Bay Mussels) in Cork. The results so far have been excellent.
Trials are also being carried out in Scotland and the Shetland Islands (Willie MaClean). "Our team have designed a float which can deal with the harsh climate we experience off the West Coast of Ireland. "We are confident that this product is superior to the outdated system of using unsightly barrels or cheaper lightweight imported products," said John Concannon. The Aquaculture industry has grown considerably over the past few years resulting in calls for all the outdated existing floats to be replaced. Blue barrels used in many bays for mussel farming are viewed as unsightly by environmentalists but the new JFC floats are manufactured from a grey colour plastic which is far less visually intrusive. The fishing industry's BIM now have grant scheme in place to encourage producers to move away from the old fashioned barrels method to a more environmentally friendly system, and JFC, with its fully certified recycling facilities, have BIM approval to participate in this scheme. "The end result is that JFC can now replace old fashioned barrels for mussel farming or inferior imported floats with a much better quality product which is Irish manufactured," says John Concannon.
This new product has been designed by JFC with substantial support from Enterprise Ireland who have been associated with the Tuam firm for the past two years. The Tuam based company also has produced a new marker buoy with a light which is solar powered and can be used for marking all floats at sea and fish farms. It is now compulsory for all fish farms to be marked by such a safety light. Local authorities and coastal protection organisations, with responsibility for marking and mapping dangerous rocks and other coastal dangers, are now starting to use the JFC marker buoys. These lights can be seen for up to two nautical miles in the dark resulting is safer waterways both inland and along the coasts.
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