By Róise Collins
OVER thirty redundancies announced earlier this year for staff at the Mowi processing plant in Fanad went into effect yesterday.
It follows a global review of a number of the company’s processing plants which have been described as operating “under capacity”.
The Norwegian fishery giant is the world’s largest producer of Atlantic salmon.
They had employed 265 people across the country before the cuts.
But in January they revealed that “challenging biology”, including higher than normal sea temperatures and harmful plankton along the coast led to a massive reduction in their salmon production.
In the fourth quarter of 2022 Mowi’s Irish division harvested 500 tonnes of fish, down from 1,500 tonnes in the same period the previous year.
The reduction in production led to the end of secondary fish processing, not only in Donegal but across Ireland. In a statement Mowi said
“Redeployment options had been offered to staff who worked in secondary production, to other aspects of operations within the company’s Donegal headquarters.
The statement added: “Redundancy takes effect on October 2, with 33 staff impacted.”
Efforts are being made to offer training and career alternatives to the impacted workers.
The fishery firm said that “training opportunities and one-to-one career guidance” have been offered to those hit by redundancies.
“The company has also engaged with management of the local social welfare office to provide on-site guidance and financial support to those directly affected,” they said.
“Mowi Ireland would like to put on record its gratitude to all its staff for their exemplary commitment to the company and intends to provide every support possible through the entire process.”
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