“The finest quality Frozen at Sea fish”
Issue 9 • Summer 2016
Catch-Up
Where does your fish really come from?
When it comes to Frozen at Sea Fish, everyone has their favourite. From skin on or skinless, to bone in or boneless, not to mention the range of sizes, from 3oz to 32+ oz. We really are spoilt for choice! Then comes the preference of which vessel it comes from, Snaefell, Polonus, Kirkella, the list is endless. All of these vessels are registered to a different country, all of which display the country of origin proudly on the box.
But where is the fish actually caught? Common belief is that the name of the country displayed on the box is where the fish originates, however this is very rarely the case. Cod and Haddock live in low temperatures and icy waters, so if your catch is boxed up and labelled “product of Spain”, surely it can’t have been caught in the Mediterranean Sea? The truth is, the country of origin on the box doesn’t refer to the product inside, it actually only refers to where a vessel is registered. For example, The Kiel is registered in Germany therefore displays ‘product of Germany’ on the box. The fish inside the box is caught, filleted, packed and frozen all in the middle of the Barents Sea.
Most vessels, whether they are registered in Spain, Russia, Poland or Iceland, actually fish in exactly the same waters. In fact, they occasionally fish so close to each other, they actually cross paths. A high percentage of all Frozen at Sea Fish is caught in the Barents Sea, also known as area 27. It’s a marginal sea of the Arctic Ocean, located just off the northern coasts of Norway and Russia. The Barents Sea’s icy conditions are a perfect habitat for Cod and Haddock to thrive, meaning all trawlers that fish here, rarely leave without a fruitful catch.