Morrisons to process seafood

[Elton]

Fresh fish from a supermarket? That would be novel!

 

http://www.worldfishing.net/news101/morris...process-seafood

[Dick Dastardly]

Fresh fish from a supermarket? That would be novel!

 

http://www.worldfishing.net/news101/morris...process-seafood

 

It is just so variable isn't it! I even pick and choose when I buy it from them for bait! The clearness of the eyes and the colour of the gills is the best indication. I'm not sure however if its actually the time from sea to counter that's the problem or how its been looked after though. Anyone?

[Steve Walker]

I tend to buy from the chiller cabinet rather than from the slab, and seek out the trays with the longest remaining shelf life.

[cleeclive]

I tend to buy from the chiller cabinet rather than from the slab, and seek out the trays with the longest remaining shelf life.

 

A lot of it is about how it has been looked after and much of that is after it has been landed. When we had wet-fish landings from Iceland in Grimsby in the 70s some of that fish was 20 days old when it hit the quayside and still perfectly good. Fish today is between 3 and 10 days old when it hits the market, so quality is mostly down to what happens to it after the first point of sale. With many hands involved there is plenty of potential for things to go wrong, even after arrival at Morrisons.

 

I do remember us catching a load of codlings and whiting on the training vessel off Hartlepool one summer and the fish was really soft. An old deep water skipper I worked with told me to fillet it and pack the fillets in a box of ice and leave them in the fish-room for 4-5 days. Beautiful firm fish when we took it home at the end of the trip and a good flavour. Modern technology does not always have the best answers, sometime the experience of an old hand has more idea than EU regulations

[Steve Walker]

Some people do generally prefer white fish a bit older. I've heard chip shop owners say that.

 

It's ridiculous how hard it is to get really good fish, given how close we all are to the coast. There is now a decent fishmonger in a neighbouring town which we should really try to support like we do the local butcher, but it's a 25 mile round trip and a quid to park and there doesn't seem much point going out of my way to get really fresh fish if I'm not going to eat it the same day - so I can't justify spending over a fiver in fuel and parking for one meal. So it comes down to the supermarket, and digging out something that they reckon is good for another three or four days, which means it will probably be OK if eaten that night. Or buying good quality deep frozen fish - our butcher has some nice stuff in stock, so we often buy that. Or keeping the odd trout to smoke.

 

I wish I lived on the seafront again, like I did when I was a student, eating mackerel a few minutes out of the sea just ruins shop bought mackerel for ever.

[captain cojones]

I cant understand why the general quality of fish in supermarkets is so bad.

I have seen stuff for human consumption that i wouldn't use for bait.

 

Our stuff is on ice in the supermarket the same day, or the day after capture at the latest. Crabs and lobsters are sold live, as are eels sometimes.

Why cant they do that in the UK?

[barry luxton]

I cant understand why the general quality of fish in supermarkets is so bad.

I have seen stuff for human consumption that i wouldn't use for bait.

 

Our stuff is on ice in the supermarket the same day, or the day after capture at the latest. Crabs and lobsters are sold live, as are eels sometimes.

Why cant they do that in the UK?

 

No such thing as fresh fish in the uk. Most caught are exported most consumed is imported. Looking at super market, errr fresh fish counters make me want to throwup. It's a disgrace what the powers to be expect joe public to eat, All to do with money and nothing to do with whats good for the end user.

[Soffit]

I live in a village with a small number of commercial boats and a wet fish shop and still can't guarantee freshness!

Its about turnover. It is so expensive; the customer base is tiny so it hangs about more than is ideal.

[cleeclive]

I live in a village with a small number of commercial boats and a wet fish shop and still can't guarantee freshness!

Its about turnover. It is so expensive; the customer base is tiny so it hangs about more than is ideal.

 

As you say I think that half the problem is about turnover, having it out on display all day and then back in the chiller to be brought out tomorrow in a hot supermarket. They could re-think display and display it in a lot more crushed ice, but no doubt there would be a raft of EU hygiene regulation relating to that which is un-workable. A lot might also relate to the staff who probably do not have the training or their hearts in looking after fish. It will be sourced through some deal that the higher echelons of management have worked out which will mean central buying and a massively complex distribution system which is "cost effective" for company profits etc but not good for quality.

[Phone]

You guys want to biytch about "fresh fish" (ocean) come to Kansas.

 

Phone