A huge shoal on anchovies attracted by the warm autumn sea temperatures have unexpectedly appeared off the Devon Coast and netted fishermen from Brixham and nearby ports more than £75,000 in the past few days. Dave Bartlett, the Brixham deputy harbour master said 'it was like striking gold'.

Meanwhile, Seafish reports that fresh caught Cornish sardines have become a new shopping favourite among fish eating Britons with consumer sales soaring to a record £34 million last year - an increase of seven per cent on the 2007 figure and all the signs are that this success story will continue to grow.While Portuguese tinned remain popular, the fresh variety sold in fishmongers and at the supermarket fish counters are rapidly catching up. Seafish has put this rise down to the fish representing value for money and the health benefits from oil fish.

No-one knows how long the anchovy bonanza will last. Reports of very large catches began spreading around Brixham last week when the crews of two sprat boats managed to haul in 36 tonnes of anchovies in only two days. Fisheries experts say the shoals would normally be in the Bay of Biscay at this time of year, But. French fishermen reported large catches of anchovies off Brest as the shoal headed round the coast of Brittany and up the Channel. Demand for anchovies remains high and they are currently selling for around £2,000 a tonne.

Printer friendly version

Email this article to a friend

Bookmark this

---