We are surrounded by sea so why is fish so expensive?

When my husband left hospital after his heart stuff the doctor said “eat omega 3 oil” that is found in fish - so we do.

1. Overfishing
2. Human greed
Thassit.

Over fishing because the European trawlers are allowed to fish up to our borders.

We were in Mallaig some years ago and we watched the catch being loaded into foreign lorries to be taken and sold in Europe. We asked the skipper why it wasn't being sold in the UK and he said there's little or no demand for it.

If you eat fish in Europe it could have been caught in British waters.

This makes interesting reading.

waters (the UK Exclusive Economic Zone).
Key Details on Foreign Catches in UK Waters
• Top Country by Value: France traditionally leads all non-UK nations, taking an estimated £171 million worth of fish from UK waters annually.
• Other Top Countries: The Netherlands (£92 million) and Denmark (£90 million) follow closely behind in value of catch from the UK Exclusive Economic Zone.
• Main Species Caught: French, Dutch, and Danish fleets primarily target pelagic and demersal stocks such as herring, mackerel, sole, and sandeels.
If you'd like, I can provide:
• A breakdown of specific species targeted by each country
• Details on current UK-EU quota agreements and access rules

Certainly before Brexit a lot of the fish that the British won't eat was sold in France. We always bought the spider crabs. After a pause the Scottish salmon reappeared after Brexit, but I am not sure the shellfish were ever as readily available.

watermeadow

I loathe all fish and wonder why we are told to eat 2 lots of oily fish per week. Before refrigeration nobody would have eaten fish unless they lived on the coast so it’s obviously not essential.

Yes they would, it would have salted or smoked

Whitewavemark -
Blackcurrant seed oil is an excellent source of omega oils 👍☘️

A few episodes of Deadliest Catch should tell you why fish are expensive.

Wyllow3

Blaming Starmer for fish issues is beyond ludicrous imo 🤣

You are entitled to your opinion.

Wyllow3

For Christmas I will Treat Myself from Waitrose (or local fishmonger, but Waitrose still have a fish counter last time I checked) - to real undyed smoked haddock. Yum. Bit of fresh dill...butter....

I was brought up in Hull, then a major fish port. Whole areas smelt of same, whole fishing communities now gone. But my, the fresh fish. Guess which hymn we sung a lot of at school

" for those in peril on the sea" was very very much alive.

Why have the fishing communities allgone? Wasnt Michael Gove affected by this? I thought that is why he backed Leave,having seen the effect the EU had on fishing?

ROMILO

MawsRosie

This is a discussion about the high cost of fish when we are surrounded by fishing grounds making what was once a staple for many people into a luxury for those with the money to spend
Please don’t patronise me by saying what this discussion may or may not be about.
We may be an island but as I said the fish are not waiting to jump into the trawlers’ nets. We do not have exclusive rights in fishing grounds off our coasts and cost reflects labour, fuel, risks, reduced catches when weather des not permit, transport and distribution costs.
The humble herring once a staple has been overfished almost to extinction and rising sea temperatures are also having an effect on stocks of some types of fish .
Fishing has always been a dangerous occupation and this is reflected in what we pay and no doubt the numbers prepared to take the risks compared with cushier indoor occupations.
Are you familiar with the song Caller (fresh) Herring?
This classic Scottish song "Caller Herrin'" features lyrics written by Lady Nairne around 1821 to a musical air by Nathaniel Gow. The song reflects the street cries of Newhaven fishwives and contrasts the dangers faced by fishermen on the Firth of Forth with the wealthy buyers.
You get what you pay for and pay for what you get.

I am sorry if I offended you there was no intention to patronise and you obviously have a very personal connection to the fishing industry, however as a lot of people have stated the price if fish has increased far in excess of other foods and that was the point of the post.

Dont worry, I think Mawsrosie is quite sensitive.

Dont worry, I think Mawsrosie is quite sensitive
What?
So its OK to insult someone's intelligence then laugh it off as "Dont worry, he/she is quite sensitive "
In a different context it might constitute locker room banter.
It takes a lot, but I am speechless.
It was a patronising response to an informed post on the topic.
And BTW no, I have no connection with fishing, living about as far from the sea as anybody in the UK can, but it does not take all that much to be reasonably well informed about food production in this country, or indeed imagination to be aware of the dangers our fishermen face on a daily basis.
Ask any RNLI volunteer!

@Meandogrog
Your opinion on another member’s sensitivity is uncalled for and condescending.
At least address the poster rather than say this to someone else.

Fresh fish can be seen as a treat but I will always pay for it if I want it when by the water.
It does reflect on the price of frozen fish too but some of that is not top quality in my view and I won’t pay for it.

Never understand why some posters are so quick to make a post personal. We’re all here to give our opinion, just that.

TillyTrotter

Never understand why some posters are so quick to make a post personal. We’re all here to give our opinion, just that.

Some posters can dish it oit but cannot take it back!

Cossy

watermeadow

I loathe all fish and wonder why we are told to eat 2 lots of oily fish per week. Before refrigeration nobody would have eaten fish unless they lived on the coast so it’s obviously not essential.

Yes they would, it would have salted or smoked

I was brought up probably as far from the sea as you could live in the UK but we had fresh fish regularly.

There was at least one fish stall in the market and also there was a fishmonger in town, part of a chain called MacFisheries. Fish was transported and displayed on ice even though many homes didn't have fridges. Plaice and cod were favourites.
My school friend's father ran a fish and chip shop.

Whitewavemark2

When my husband left hospital after his heart stuff the doctor said “eat omega 3 oil” that is found in fish - so we do.

And in cod liver oil (capsules!).

A combination of Russian factory ships taking small fish, which decimated the growing population; and being part of the EU where Spanish trawlers, having overfished their own waters, were allowed to land their quotas here having been given our waters to fish in. Our fishermen gave up trying to make ends meet; now we have fewer and they have to travel further out to find the fish.

Sadly, as a fish lover, I am now eating Vietnamese basa, and recently fish fingers made with US hake.

A lot of our fish comes from Vietnam,too. However, this will be limited in the future because the Chinese dam the Mekong upstream, apparently threatening the livelihood of many Vietnamese fishermen. When we were in Vietnam on a tour a couple of local people told us that so how true it is, who knows? Sort of rings true,though.

Part of the reason is that the sea is no longer full of fish due to overfishing. Fish stocks in many areas are very low.

We go to Amble in Northumberland on holiday and use Alliance fishmongers to stock up before we venture home. Last time I bought two pieces of halibut for £26 but they gave us two meals each. There used to be only fresh fish if the boats can get out and return safely. Fishing is one of the most dangerous industries after mining ( before it disappeared). Never forget who was our, often absent, MEP for fishing! Some use he was!
I use basa fillets for a fish pie or pollack. Tuna steaks are good from Aldi or Lidl . We need to avoid mackerel as stocks are getting low!

Fish prices have risen in France also. I put this down to the cost of diesel, wages, lower quotas and electric refrigeration and lastly, Brexit because the UK imports a lot.

Macron has threatened the supermarkets not to make ‘undue profits’.

Sorry correction, Brexit is UK’s problem

From what I can gather, our waters are rich in Herring which then rest of Europe likes but we don't. Cod and Haddock comes from the North Atlantic which is further away and so more expensive.