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In the fiscal year 1894 Germany imported more than one million barrels of salted herrings valued in excess of twenty-five million marks; to make the nation more independent of foreign sources for such an important resource, a number of herring fishing companies were formed in the coastal cities of northern Germany. The Bremen-Vegesacker Fischerei-Gesellschaft was formed in January 1895 to redress the situation. The moving force behind the firm’s foundation was Ludwig Franzius, with the support of the Bremer Vulkan shipyard, Christian Michelsen of the Bremer Tauwerkfabrik, Carl Hartmann, proprietor of the Norddeutschen Volkszeitung newspaper and others with interest in nautical affairs.

In its early years the firm operated a fleet of sailing trawlers, with twenty such vessels operating in the 1899 season; in 1900, the firm introduced its first steam trawler. A shore-side establishment was constructed at Vegesack, covering an area of more than 1,300 square meters, for the landing, processing and trans-shipment of its ships’ catch. In the fleet’s first season, more than 2,800 tons of herrings were landed, demonstrating the potential profits awaiting the venture.

In the years leading up to the Great War the firm’s operating facility at Vegesack underwent continual improvement – ship repair facilities, a packing department, cold-storage depots, a power station and a cooperage shop with a capacity of more than six hundred barrels per day were added. A floating dry dock for the repair of trawlers was completed in 1909. At the outbreak of the Great War the firm’s fleet comprised twenty-five sailing trawlers, fifteen steam trawlers and Germany’s first motor trawler, powered by a diesel engine.

Despite losses in the Great War the firm was able, with the help of financial support from the Government, to re-establish itself. The facilities at Vegesack were expanded and housing for the firm’s seamen and other workers was constructed. In 1931 the fleet and facilities of the Elsflether Heringsfischerei were absorbed.

At the present time the firm operates a fleet of seventy modern steam and motor trawlers manned by more than 1,200 seamen, with more than six hundred workers employed in shore establishments to process the catch and maintain the ships of the fleet. It is one of the largest commercial herring fishing operations in Europe.

This firm was formed in Emden in 1904 as part of the general expansion of the German commercial fishing industry in the years prior to the Great War. The founding capital investment of one million marks permitted the acquisition of shore-side facilities and the rapid outfitting of a fleet of steam trawlers. At the outbreak of the Great War the firm was operating no fewer than twenty three herring busses.

In the postwar period the firm received support from the government which allowed it to renew its fleet and its processing facilities. Additional private investment permitted it to acquire the assets of the Braker Heringsfischerei, which went into liquidation in 1927. By 1932 the firm’s fleet had been thoroughly refurbished and comprised fifteen motor and six steam trawlers. The adoption of Logger-Neubauprogramme in 1936 saw the construction of a further six modern diesel-engined trawlers, as well as investments in new processing and packing facilities.

Late in 1941 the firm completed negotiations to purchase the Heringsfischerei Dollart, also of Emden, acquiring thereby its fleet of six steam and seven motor trawlers.

This firm is one of the oldest commercial fisheries still active in Germany, having been founded in 1872. Six vessels were put to sea in the first season, with commendable results. Practices, equipment and the vessels employed were very much on the Dutch model, though innovations were introduced over time. The subsequent establishment of other fishing companies in Emden led to the organisation of a central committee to prevent ruinous competition in the growing industry, and promote the sharing of facilities.

At the time of the outbreak of the Great War the firm operated thirty-two herring busses, of which seven were modern steam-powered vessels; these were the most productive element of the fleet, capable of streaming and handling nets as long as three kilometers. War, however, caused great losses in vessels and skilled manpower, but the firm was able to recover thanks to financial assistance from the Government. In the early 1930s a construction subsidy program saw the introduction of new motor fishing trawlers to the fleet; by 1939 the fleet comprised thirteen motor and eight steam trawlers, plus two small refrigerated motor vessels for the carriage of fresh fish, and two more motor trawlers were under construction.

In 1940 the firm acquired the assets of the Glückstädter Heringsfischerei, acquiring an additional six motor trawlers as well as shore-side facilities in Glückstädt. The following year it merged with the Leerer Heringsfischerei, which operated a fleet of twelve herring busses and three motor fishing trawlers equipped for carriage of fresh fish in their insulated spaces.

This firm was founded in July 1907 in Geestemünde to undertake deep-sea fishing in the northern Atlantic. The original directors included Georg Seebeck, Ferdinand Niedermeyer, Johann Segebade, Ludwig Janssen, Ludwig Nösinger, Heinrich Schnitger and Edward Richardson. Six steam trawlers were obtained from the Seebeckwerft and immediately put to sea, and while initial results were disappointing, they were sufficient to warrant the construction of a further two trawlers. At the outbreak of the Great War the firm’s vessels were confined to their harbours due to the effects of the British blockade, and a number of its trawlers were requisitioned by the Kaiserliche Marine for the duration. When peace returned the firm was left with but five vessels, which were immediately put to sea.

Two new vessels were obtained in the early 1920s, and investments were made in the firm’s short establishment, including the construction of a workshop for manufacturing nets, warehouses and maintenance shops for the company’s fleet. During this period it was able to increase its capital through stock issues, but Government support for the fishing industry was vital for the firm’s survival during those difficult times.

In 1931 the firm merged with the Deutsche Fischerei of Wesermünde, adding its nine modern steam trawlers to its own fleet of ten vessels. The firm took a half-share in the Deutsche Stock und Klippfischwerke, a modern fish processing facility constructed in Geestemünde, and it availed itself of the Logger-Neubauprogramme to refurbish its fleet through the construction of six large deep-sea motor trawlers.

At the present time the firm operates a fleet of twenty-two motor and steam trawlers, all of which have been constructed after 1920, as well as two small motorships equipped with insulated chambers for the carriage of fish.

This firm was founded in 1896 in the city of Bremen, to participate in the deep-sea fishing trade in the northern Atlantic Ocean. Before the Great War a fleet of eight large steam trawlers had been built up, of which only two survived the war. With Government support a reconstruction programme was put in hand, and five steam trawlers were constructed during the 1920s, with a further seven motor trawlers constructed in the 1930s under the Logger-Neubauprogramme.

In 1935 the Dresdener Bank acquired a quarter interest in the firm and with the bank’s financial backing the firm acquired the assets and fleets of the Cuxhavener Hochseefischerei and the Kohlenberg und Putz Seefischerei, adding a further seven vessels to its fleet. In 1936 the cold storage firm of Lohmann und Compangie of Hamburg was acquired and reorganised as a subsidiary. In 1938 the firm began the processing of fish meal, and established subsidiaries in Hamburg and in Wesermünde to erect factories for this purpose.


Subsidiaries of the firm include:

Hamburger Fischmehlindustrie AG, Hamburg (fish meal and fish product processing)
Tiefkühlgesellschaft Lohmann AG, Hamburg (cold storage)
Wesermünder Fischmehlindustrie AG, Wesermünde (fish meal and fish product processing)