Once considered a cheap family snack, is the plate fast becoming a luxury dish? The question is now on the table. In mid-November, on the shelves of Normandy fish shops, as in Caen, a kilogram of cooked fish rose to 20 euros. In Courseulles-sur-Mer, still in Calvados, or Cherbourg, on the Channel, it was around €15, compared to less than €7 in previous years at the same time. More than the impact of the diesel price hike on fishermen’s margins, experts attribute this rise in prices to the scarcity of the resource. We are talking about once again warming the sea by about +1.5 degrees.
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“In the Western channel, we have gone from 13,500 tonnes in 2012 to less than 8,000 tonnes per year, that is 40% less, while the water temperature now rises to 20 degrees in summer, compared to less than 18 years ago. ahead”, observes José Sarazin, project manager of the Normandie Fraîcheur Mer Association, based in Granville. Fishing mainly on the sandy bottoms of the North Atlantic, from northern Brittany to the English Channel, the codfish prefers cold waters for spawning. As temperatures rise, these molluscs tend to sink deeper into the mud, grow more slowly, and become more difficult to catch. Hence the increase in prices, currently at auction at 7.20 euros per kilogram, compared to less than 2.80 last year.
Prices may go up even more for the holiday season. Dimitri Rogoff, president of the Normandy Regional Fisheries Committee, admits this lip service. “I never thought I’d say this one day, but people take the risk of becoming a luxury commodity.” He wants proof of this in the evolution of fishing zones. “For some years now we have noticed that the old southern boundary of the Norman-Breton golf course has tended to move a little further north.”he notes.
Every other Friday
Previously considered a second source of income for Normandy fishermen, the decline of this iconic shell in Granville Bay is a new blow to the fishing industry after several years of wild mussels disappearing from the east coast of the English Channel. ; also due to the warming of the waters. Some carriers are even already considering conversions. “Recently, two Granville-registered raiders applied for a double license to diversify into larvae whose biomass is increasing.”observes Jose Sarazin.
The scarcity of the resource is starting to seriously worry the sector. Today, around 200 boats fish in Normandy, including 150 exclusive “bulotists”. In an attempt to stem the mollusk’s disappearance, the Regional Fisheries Committee is now considering proposing a ban on fishing every other Friday from 2023, while its catch is already completely banned on the west coast in January.
Source: Le Figaro
I’m Liza Grey, an experienced news writer and author at the Buna Times. I specialize in writing about economic issues, with a focus on uncovering stories that have a positive impact on society. With over seven years of experience in the news industry, I am highly knowledgeable about current events and the ways in which they affect our daily lives.