The name says it. Fisher & Farmer covers the full breadth of Ireland’s seafood sector — from the boats that catch it to the shoreline operations that cultivate it. The fishers are the skippers, the inshore fleet, the crews working pots, nets, and lines. The farmers are the mussel growers, the oyster producers, the seaweed harvesters, the shellfish cultivators who work the foreshore and the open water. Together, they are the independent, small-scale operators this programme is built around.
CREEL is an employer-led apprenticeship programme that serves both sides. We employ the apprentices. We manage the programme. You — whether you fish it or farm it — provide the training placements.
Fisher & Farmer
The Fisher
Catching
Inshore skippers and small vessel owners. The people who work pots, nets, lines, and trawls from single-vessel or small-fleet operations — landing fish and shellfish from the sea. Fishmongers, smokehouses, and small processors who handle, prepare, and sell the catch.
The Farmer
Cultivating
Mussel farmers. Oyster growers. Seaweed harvesters. Shellfish cultivators working rope, trestle, bag, and longline systems on the foreshore and in open water. The aquaculture operators who grow, tend, grade, harvest, and bring to market the farmed seafood Ireland is known for.
Ireland has 77 national apprenticeship programmes — in everything from carpentry to cybersecurity, farm management to hairdressing. Not one of them covers fishing, aquaculture, or any part of the seafood supply chain. CREEL exists to fill that gap, and to do it in a way that works for the small, independent businesses the sector actually depends on.
Why This Exists
The Irish seafood sector depends on thousands of small, independent operators — inshore skippers working single vessels, mussel farmers tending ropes in sheltered bays, family-run fish counters, small smokehouses, oyster growers, seaweed harvesters. These are the businesses that sustain coastal communities and carry generations of knowledge. But a sole-operator skipper or a two-person oyster farm shouldn’t have to become a human resources department to take on a trainee.
Fisher & Farmer is the employer of record. We handle registration with SOLAS, compliance with the national apprenticeship framework, payroll, mentoring coordination, and off-the-job training release. The people who know the work — the skippers, the fishmongers, the mussel farmers, the seaweed harvesters — do what they do best: teach it. This programme exists specifically for the smaller businesses that large-scale training schemes overlook.
How It Works
The apprentice is employed by Fisher & Farmer and rotates through structured placements with small, independent businesses across both sides of the seafood sector: time on the water with inshore skippers, time on mussel ropes or oyster trestles with aquaculture operators, time behind a fish counter or in a small processing operation, time in marine stewardship. Off-the-job training is delivered through our education partners.
This rotation model means the apprentice gains breadth no single small operator could provide — they learn to fish and to farm. It means a skipper or an oyster grower gets a trained pair of hands without navigating SOLAS paperwork. And it means if one placement can’t run for a season, another fills the gap. The programme continues regardless.
How You Participate
Select your role below to learn more ↓
I’m an Inshore Skipper or Small Vessel Owner
You’re on the fisher side. You agree to host an apprentice for defined periods aboard your vessel, providing supervised, practical training in commercial fishing operations — boat handling, gear work, catch handling, safety at sea, navigation. You bring the expertise. Fisher & Farmer brings the apprentice, carries the employment obligations, and coordinates the training schedule around your season and your operation.
You don’t need to register as an apprenticeship employer. You don’t file with SOLAS. You don’t manage payroll. You fish, and you teach someone how to fish properly.
What it costs you:
You pay a modest weekly placement fee while the apprentice is aboard your vessel. This is significantly less than hiring crew directly, because Fisher & Farmer carries the wages, PRSI, insurance, and all employer obligations. You’re paying for access to a trained, supervised worker — not employing one.
The fee is scaled to the size of your operation. For single-vessel inshore operators, reduced rates and grant-subsidised placements are available. We won’t price out the people this programme is built for.
To get involved: Register your interest using the form below.
I’m in Aquaculture — Mussels, Oysters, Seaweed, Shellfish
You’re on the farmer side. Whether you’re growing mussels on ropes, tending oyster trestles, harvesting seaweed, or cultivating clams and other shellfish — if you’re a smaller aquaculture operation and can provide supervised practical experience, you’re exactly the kind of placement this programme needs.
Aquaculture is a core competency in the CREEL rotation. Apprentices spend structured time learning the growing, grading, harvesting, and husbandry that make up the farming side of the seafood sector. Your expertise is irreplaceable — and we make it easy for you to share it.
What it costs you:
Same model as all host placements: a weekly fee while the apprentice is with you, scaled to the size of your operation. Fisher & Farmer carries the employment costs. For seasonal operations, placements are scheduled around your cycle — you only pay for the weeks the apprentice is on site.
To get involved: Register your interest using the form below.
I Run a Fish Counter, Smokehouse, or Small Processing Business
You’re where the fisher and the farmer meet the customer. Independent fishmongers, market stall operators, small smokehouses, artisan processors — if you’re a smaller business in seafood retail or processing, you can host an apprentice for a structured placement covering fish handling, filleting, food safety, quality assessment, provenance, and customer-facing retail skills.
This is designed for businesses like yours. You get access to someone who is being trained properly across the whole supply chain — from boat and farm to counter — not just dropped in.
What it costs you:
You pay a weekly placement fee for the weeks the apprentice is with you. Fisher & Farmer employs the apprentice, handles payroll and insurance, and manages the programme — you just provide the training and supervision.
The fee reflects the fact that you’re getting a productive worker in your business. For very small operations — a single fish counter, a two-person smokehouse — we offer reduced rates so the programme remains accessible to the independents who need it most.
To get involved: Register your interest using the form below.
I Run a Non-Seafood Rural Business
The rotation model means apprentices benefit from exposure beyond the seafood supply chain. If you run a farm, smallholding, food business, or other rural enterprise in a coastal community and can offer structured experience in food production, land management, or related skills, there may be a placement partnership that works for both of us.
This isn’t about turning a fishing apprentice into a land farmer — it’s about giving them a broader understanding of the food system they’re entering. A week on a mixed farm, in a farm shop, or with a local food producer adds context that makes them better at their core trade.
What it costs you:
Same placement fee model as all host businesses, scaled to your operation. Fisher & Farmer carries the employment costs. Placements are short and scheduled to suit your season.
To get involved: Register your interest using the form below.
I Want to Become an Apprentice
This programme is for people who want to work in the Irish seafood sector — on either the fisher or the farmer side, or across both — and are prepared to commit to a structured, multi-year programme combining on-the-job training with formal qualifications. You’ll be employed by Fisher & Farmer, earn while you learn, and rotate through placements with independent, small-scale businesses: inshore fishing boats, mussel farms, oyster operations, fish counters, smokehouses, seaweed harvesters, and coastal enterprises.
You’ll work towards a nationally recognised qualification on the National Framework of Qualifications. You’ll have a designated mentor. And you’ll come out the other side with the skills, the sea time, and the contacts to build a career in this industry.
What it costs you:
Nothing. You are a paid employee of Fisher & Farmer for the duration of the programme. Your wages, training fees, and off-the-job education costs are covered. You earn while you learn.
To apply: Register your interest using the form below.
Programme Structure
The apprenticeship follows the national framework: a blend of on-the-job training with an approved employer (Fisher & Farmer) and off-the-job training with an education partner. The programme leads to a QQI award on the National Framework of Qualifications.
On-the-job phases are delivered through rotation across host placements — fishing vessels, aquaculture operations, processing facilities, and marine stewardship activities. The rotation ensures every apprentice gains experience on both the fisher and the farmer side of the sector. Off-the-job phases cover the technical, regulatory, and academic components. The full programme structure, duration, and qualification level will be confirmed as the QQI validation process concludes.
Partners
Fisher & Farmer is developing this programme specifically to serve the independent, small-scale businesses that the seafood sector depends on but that existing training infrastructure doesn’t reach. We are pursuing registration as an approved apprenticeship employer with SOLAS and are working with the National Apprenticeship Office on programme development and consortium formation, with the goal of achieving QQI-validated award status. We are actively engaging with Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), whose Skills Strategy for a Sustainable Seafood Sector 2023–2028 identifies the development of a seafood industry apprenticeship as a strategic priority.
Expression of Interest
Whether you’re a skipper, a mussel farmer, a fishmonger, or someone who wants to train into the sector — tell us who you are and we’ll be in touch.
Interest registered
Thank you. We’ll be in touch as the programme develops. In the meantime, if you have questions, email us at info@fisherandfarmer.com.