{"id":601052,"date":"2026-08-22T09:16:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-22T09:16:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/601052\/"},"modified":"2026-08-22T09:16:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-22T09:16:16","slug":"inshore-fishermen-warn-livelihood-is-on-a-tight-line-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/601052\/","title":{"rendered":"Inshore fishermen warn livelihood is on a tight line"},"content":{"rendered":"

The day’s catch on Leenan Pier in Inishowen, Co Donegal, is sorted by hand – live crab for China and lobster for France and those landing it note margins are tightening.<\/p>\n

For fisherman Robert Kearney, the catch reflects both sides of the inshore trade: high-quality seafood leaving a remote coastal community for international markets and a business model under severe pressure from fuel, bait and shellfish prices.<\/p>\n

“This is a typical catch for August; there\u2019s a lot of soft-shell crab on the ground [sea-bed]. We don\u2019t have a big quantity of crab, but the quality is very high.<\/p>\n

“This is destined for China. A van will take it away tomorrow and it will be flown live into Beijing within two to three days,” he said<\/p>\n

The lobster is bound for France.<\/p>\n

Mr Kearney said the value of the catch is hit by bills.<\/p>\n

“This may look like a good catch; but it\u2019s leaving it tight on the line for running costs. A boat of this size here today, for the diesel and the bait was \u20ac800.<\/p>\n

“Four years ago, we could take this boat to sea and a full day\u2019s bait was \u20ac200 and a full day\u2019s diesel was \u20ac200.<\/p>\n

\"Robert
\nLocal fishmen like Robert Kearney and his colleagues warn that margins are tightening<\/p>\n

“The price of the shellfish seems to be coming down. It’s balanced out now at half the price that it was five years ago.<\/p>\n

“We\u2019ve three men on deck and myself; four men to pay. We\u2019ve bait. We\u2019ve diesel. It\u2019s so tight,” he said.<\/p>\n

A family business under pressure<\/p>\n

The boat is a family workplace. Mr Kearney\u2019s brothers and his sons are part of the crew, but he said keeping a crew together has become increasingly difficult.<\/p>\n

For families trying to maintain viable businesses in a remote coastal community, fishing vessels represent a significant investment.<\/p>\n

In recent years, they\u2019ve had to contend with the impact that Covid-19, Brexit and international wars on seafood exports and increases in fuel costs.<\/p>\n

“If it goes any further, I would nearly call it Armageddon for the inshore fleet – that\u2019s how tight it is. We’re on a tight line; bait, diesel and a crew,” Mr Kearney warned.<\/p>\n

\"Cancer
\nThe Atlantic Brown Crab is native to Ireland and popular in China<\/p>\n

He notes Leenan and other small piers along north Donegal support a wider economy from shops and fuel suppliers to hauliers and processors.<\/p>\n

“You\u2019ve Glengad, Bunagee, Malin Head Pier, Fanad. They reckon for every one job on a boat, there\u2019s three on shore. That\u2019s a lot of work that this small area is keeping.”<\/p>\n

He said some Government support had been helpful but argued that assistance with running costs and access to grant aid needed to be simpler and more effective.<\/p>\n

“That fuel subsidy; there was so much red tape and paperwork\u2026 they put you through so many loopholes to get so little… It was like a week at school. They can simplify it.”<\/p>\n

Department set to pay out \u20ac9.8m in fuel supports<\/p>\n

The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine introduced a Fishing and Aquaculture Registered Vessel Fuel Support Scheme some months ago to offset increased fuel costs experienced as a result of the conflict in the Middle East.<\/p>\n

The scheme, operated by Bord Iascaigh Mhara, was designed to support applicants for the five-month period from March to July 2026.<\/p>\n

\"Fishing
\nFishermen worry that young people are not joining the trade, with some leaving the area entirely<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the department said payments commenced in July and continued through August, with more than \u20ac8.5m paid to date on 397 applications.<\/p>\n

They added final payments are expected to total approximately \u20ac9.8m, subject to completion of final checks.<\/p>\n

The department spokesperson said there was also a separate Aquaculture Business Vessel Fuel Support Scheme for those not required to be on the Irish Sea Fishing Boat Register, in which payments are due to issue in due course.<\/p>\n

That scheme launched on 24 June and closed for applications on 8 July. It is being implemented under the Temporary Crisis Framework set up by the EU Commission.<\/p>\n

‘We want to pass it onto the next generation’<\/p>\n

For Robert Kearney, the question is not only whether the industry can maintain viability, but whether young fishermen who are learning the trade will see a future in it.<\/p>\n

“We\u2019ve done it since we were 12 years of age. We’re at it a lifetime. We want to pass it onto the next generation.<\/p>\n

“My two sons have been on the boat since they were 12 or 13 years old, learning the trade.<\/p>\n

“My 13-year-old [son] got up at 5am. It was pouring rain for the first five hours. It was blowing four to five westerly. He had a tough morning, but he got through it.<\/p>\n

“My older son is 18; he does a bit of boxing. He’s on a full-time payroll with us since he left school. I would love to think in a few years, if they wanted to fish that there’s something there.”<\/p>\n

\"Harbor
\nTrawlers moored in Killybegs, Co Donegal (File image)<\/p>\n

‘One of the best jobs in the world’<\/p>\n

Martin Kearney, who fishes alongside his older brother Robert, describes it as “one of the best [jobs] in the world,” but added the challenges are stark.<\/p>\n

“Our whole family is based off fishing. If it gets any worse, I’d say it will just be a matter of trying to look for different jobs; that’s how important it is – it\u2019s running all our houses.<\/p>\n

“It seems to be just whenever the price of fuel goes up, everybody else is able to put their prices up, except the fishermen.”<\/p>\n

He said fishing has always been his main ambition, and will continue, if, at all possible.<\/p>\n

“It\u2019s one of the best jobs in the world. There are a lot of people and if it wasn’t for the love they had for it, this wouldn’t be worth it at this stage,” he said.<\/p>\n

Mr Kearney owns a small boat, which he uses for lobster fishing. Although he would like to upgrade to a larger vessel, he feels it is now beyond his reach.<\/p>\n

“About five or six years ago, I bought my own small boat for fishing lobsters; I always thought I’d be able to build it up and someday get a bigger boat, but that’s out the window at this stage, unless you put yourself into massive debt.”<\/p>\n

‘Everything has gotten too dear’<\/p>\n

Standing alongside Robert and Martin on Leenan Pier is Denis Kearney, who has been fishing crab for 48 years, and echoed their concerns.<\/p>\n

“I’m fishing since ’78\u2026 I would say people are just struggling. They’re making no fortune.<\/p>\n

“You couldn’t even go now to buy a new boat. Everything has gotten too dear; too expensive.<\/p>\n

“It’s all family run boats around here and it’s very hard work; five o’clock in the morning until six or seven o’clock in the evening. I’\u2019s very hard,” he remarked.<\/p>\n

A task force chaired by former IFA chief executive Michael Berkery is considering the challenges facing catch fisheries, aquaculture and seafood processing.<\/p>\n

The Food Vision Seafood Sector Group was set up by Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon and Minister of State Timmy Dooley in the spring.<\/p>\n

Mr Berkery\u2019s report is due later in the autumn; those looking for assurance about the industry\u2019s future, will be keeping a close eye.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The day’s catch on Leenan Pier in Inishowen, Co Donegal, is sorted by hand – live crab for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":600999,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[61,60,43],"class_list":["post-601052","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-ireland","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601052","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=601052"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601052\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/600999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=601052"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=601052"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=601052"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}