Sunday best.

Just 500m off shore two of the port's sardines boats, Asthore and Pride of Cornwall search the choppy waters for a good mark on the sonar to shoot their nets around...

an offshore wind and white water round the base of the Mount is a sure sign that a ground sea is still running out there...

Newlyn Harbour Wall Theatre as thespian Rodney Bewes refers to the port he spent some time fishing from back in the 1970s...

also back in the port again after 25 years, the netter Ygraine...

not on duty in the Scillys today...

French trawler, L'ar Voaleden...

one lorry, two boats...

Will-i-am's Cornish cousin?...

you can tell by the lighthouse at the end of the quay...

Britannia V on the way in...

with Ed and the rest of the crew...

happy to be home!...

"Taking the food from our mouths" was what my old skipper Bill Tonkin would shout up to anglers fishing off the end of the quay as we came in, Through the Gaps.

Catch some live action from the deck of the Brixham beam trawler Our Miranda.

Stand by to catch some live action from the deck of the Brixham beam trawler Our Miranda.

Deep sea trawling from the deck of a Lorient trawler.

Life at sea on one of Lorient's deep sea trawlers when talk of quotas and overfishing were for the future.

Posted by J'aime la mer et les bateaux.

What impact will the Landing Obligations have on fishing? - latest Seafish report.

Latest Seafish report by local fisheries expert Nathan De Rozarieux at Tegen Mor Consultants on the impact of the new discards or "Landing Obligation" policy.  The aim of the work is to analyse the impact of the landing obligation in a whole supply chain context, and from financial, legal, operational and market perspectives. This project will:- 

•Map the UK supply chain and identify existing and perceived issues for each sector. •Assess the impact of issues in respect of changes in policy •Discuss potential consequences for each sector; for example, changes in operational behaviour, policy issues, loss of supply or loss of market. •Identify gaps in information and suggest better use of existing information. 

The analyses will be mainly qualitative.

One in six people eating more fish than a year ago

A long way to go but "one in six people eating more fish than a year ago" - great news for fishermen hoping to see an increase in the consumption of fresh UK fish - now all they need is the flexibility in the quota system to allow them to go out and catch those extra percents!!

A survey for sustainable seafood ecolabel, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has found that one in six people (17%) in the UK are eating more fish and seafood than they were a year ago, with most of them (65%) saying they have increased their fish intake because they are trying to eat more healthily.

Fish and seafood are low in fat and high in protein, and have long been hailed for a host of health benefits. The NHS recommends that a healthy diet should include at least two portions of fish a week, including one portion of oily fish, which contains high levels of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids and is thought to help prevent heart disease[1].

Two thirds of people (65%) who reported eating more fish these days, said the change in their diet had been motivated by trying to eat more healthily, while other reasons included an effort to cook or eat a wider variety of dishes (42%). One third of people who were eating more fish (33%) said it was because they had reduced the amount of meat they eat, though just 2% said they had become pescatarian or cut meat out of their diet altogether.

Toby Middleton, Programme Director for MSC in the UK, said: "At this time of year, many of us resolve to eat more healthily or try new things, and incorporating more fish in our diets can be a good way to achieve both goals. But our poll took place before New Year’s resolutions were made, so clearly for a lot of people the switch to eating more fish is not just for January - there seems to be a growing, year-round interest in ‘meat-free Mondays’, for example, as people try to cut back on the amount of meat they eat, without becoming out-and-out vegetarians.

Healthy oceans as well as healthy diets

"As demand for seafood increases, so does the need to protect our oceans from overfishing. That means it’s increasingly important to ensure that the fish we eat is caught sustainably, so that future seafood supplies and the marine environment are safeguarded," added Middleton. "Consumers can play their part by choosing seafood with the blue MSC ecolabel”.

When shoppers choose products with the MSC ecolabel, they reward the fisheries that are committed to sustainable sourcing, and incentivises others to improve their practices, helping to ensure that life in our oceans is safeguarded for the future.

Almost one in four full-time students (24%) and more than one in five Londoners (22%) polled by YouGov on behalf of the MSC said they were eating more fish these days. People living in households without children were also more likely to have stepped-up their fish consumption (20%).

  - See more at: http://www.worldfishing.net/news101/industry-news/one-in-six-uk-consumers-eating-more-fish#sthash.XORqURAv.dpuf

First #FishyFriday of 2016!

Bass!...

one beam trawler, two netters and a handful of day boats made landings for this morning's market...

giving Cefas a chance to collect more data...

buying is a serious business with fish in short supply around the ports of Europe...

so prime fish like these Dover soles from the Cornishman are sure to make good money...

as are these bass...

and other line caught fish like this red bream...

and more bass!...

the year's first decent shot of hake form the Karen of Ladram and the Ajax should make good money too...

while this big shot of cuttles...

from the Cornishman will keep Falfish in the black...

after taking ice it is time for the Ajax to sail for the second trip of the tide - remember gillnetters are restricted to fishing over neap tides when the nets can fish properly...

with the moon still bright in the morning sky...

the Ajax heads back out to sea.

“All Hail the Hake”

With the latest real life drama fishing programme taking to the our TV screens this week Mike Warner has posted an excellent article on the traceability of Newlyn's top fish - the mighty MSC Certified hake.

Passionate About Fish's Sue Lucas, provider of the Newlyn Fish Festival annual mammoth fish display champions many varieties of Cornish fish in her Camberley fish shop:

“It’s lovely to be able to sell people not just a fish but a story,” she enthuses. “We’ve actively promoted hake, because it presents such a delicious and truly traceable alternative to the staples of cod and haddock. Since we opened, I can categorically state that sales of Cornish MSC hake now outsell cod by twice as much and by four times the haddock.”

“I’ve made a deliberate and concerted effort to include the fishermen in Newlyn in the whole promotion and Alan has been fantastic in assisting with our requirements, he’s always in contact and will message me even when he’s at sea, so I feel very connected to the whole process.”

“Social media now plays a huge part in how we promote the sea to plate journey. Fishermen like Alan are embracing the technology and the ability to communicate with a wider audience. This is vital in our portrayal of a vibrant and viable seafood sector, where confidence is beginning to return after decades of bad press and constant vilification.”

Sue engages as much as she can with the Cornish boys and procures most of her South-western fishery needs through Newlyn Fish. Every species sourced is tagged with the name of the boat that caught it and Sue reckons it doesn’t come a lot more traceable than that.

If you are lucky enough to get hold of some fresh hake - and both the Ajax and the Karen of Ladram are landing over 150 boxes between them on tomorrow morning's market in Newlyn - learn how to prepare the fish from Sue and Duncan Lewis in this video:

Read the full story here: