Worldwide Fishing Company (WOFCO) is the new owner of the Central Lomera Portuguesa (CLP) tuna loining plant in Portugal. Last week, it signed a deal with Marfrío to acquire 100 percent of the share capital. The Spanish seafood company stated on Friday that the process began 18 months ago, “when the group [Marfrío] assumed responsibility for the company’s management and reorganization.” Earlier this month, there were rumors about such a takeover. WOFCO now confirmed the deal, saying it will enhance its industrial platform and further strengthen its status in the international tuna industry.

Atunlo and Marfrío equally owned the CLP plant in Vila Nova de Cerveira, founded in 2018. After the Court allowed the dismissal of three Atunlo managers in September 2024, Marfrío took over the management. This led to operational consolidation and restoration of the facility’s viability. Last December, the company became the full owner after it acquired Atunlo’s 50 percent stake from Coper for EUR 1.4 million. “Having successfully met the objectives defined at the outset, the group now concludes this phase of its involvement,” stated WOFCO.

The Maltese Fisheries Information Integrated System (FIIS) was launched last week. FIIS, a national digital platform developed for Malta to integrate 100 percent of its tuna and other fisheries activities and data into one unified system, was designed and developed by Spanish technology firm Satlink. The introduction of FIIS will “formally mark the start of a national project that sets a new European standard for digital fisheries management,” read a Satlink statement. Malta is home to several bluefin fattening farms that operate in the Atlantic Ocean and vessels that catch the fish here.

Maltese fisheries officials and Satlink executives, who attended the launch, stated that FIIS will make Malta the “European country to operate a fully integrated national fisheries management ecosystem, where monitoring, scientific reporting, administrative processes, market supervision, and stakeholder engagement operate within one coordinated system.” Currently, the system will support over 800 commercial vessels and 2,000 recreational boats. The FIIS is being developed in alignment with the European regulatory framework, including the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP), the ICCAT obligations to manage, monitor, and report on the fishing of tuna and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean, and the EU data protection standards, stated Satlink.

The European Tuna Conference will be held on April 20 in Barcelona. Session II will focus on traceability and import reporting in the European tuna supply chain. To register and receive an early bird discount, see this link. 

Malaysian officials seized thousands of dollars’ worth canned tuna shipment this week that entered the nation from Vietnam sans valid permits. The cargo weighed over 15,000 kg with a sales value of MYR 219,420 (USD 56,230).

A spokesperson for the Malaysian Border Control and Protection Agency (MCBA), which carried out the operation, stated that the products illegally entered the nation without permission from the Malaysian Quarantine and Inspection Services Department (Maqis), a federal agency that enforce biosecurity, quarantine and safety checks on fish and animal products. The seizure was a preventive measure to control the risk of animal diseases and to ensure food safety, and to determine that public health standards are upheld, reported New Straits Times.