Hooked on fish
West Coasters love their wild salmon, but in Central Canada it's a hard sell
By JUDY CREIGHTON, THE CANADIAN PRESS September 20, 2006
British Columbia's wild salmon catch has been phenomenal so far this summer, but the flamboyant fish is a hard sell when it comes to markets in Central and Eastern Canada.
"We don't really ship a lot of fresh B.C. salmon to the east because in fact consumers there haven't appreciated the quality of the product over farmed salmon," says Rob Morley, vice-president of the Canadian Fishing Company and director of the B.C. Salmon Marketing Council in Vancouver.
"Consumers here are willing to pay the premium," he says, "but we haven't been able to generate the same kinds of sales interest in Central Canada."
A spokesman for the council says that, so far, the coastwide commercial sockeye harvest has brought in four million sockeye salmon, the largest number since 1997. Numbers are expected to continue to increase to about 16 million before the season ends.
EXPORT MARKETS
Morley credits a conservative approach to managing the salmon fishery over the past 10 years for the increase in the harvest.
A large percentage of this year's production will find its way into traditional export markets in Europe, the U.S. and Japan.
Generally, of the wild salmon that remains in Canada, half is consumed on the West Coast in British Columbia. Ontario and Quebec each consume about 20% of the catch with Alberta taking in the balance.
North Vancouver fishmonger Kosta Zogaris is one of the biggest cheerleaders for West Coast wild salmon. He owns the Salmon Shop at the Lonsdale Quay where the Sea Bus, which serves the North Shore from downtown Vancouver, docks.
But his favourite wild salmon species lean to the less familiar such as chums, cohoe, the pinks and white springs.
"The white spring is the earliest fish, and this year for some particular reason it has been the choice fish," Zogaris said. "Other years the sockeye has been the first choice because of its colour and unique flavour.
"The first fishery for spring salmon starts in October, but we don't see it until January because the early fresh catches are very expensive. A kilo can cost between $34 and $44."
However, he adds that spring salmon caught at sea which are flash frozen are less pricey and the texture is little altered.
Spring salmon is a large fish, weighing in at more than five kilograms or more and Zogaris says its flesh comes in all colours from ivory white "all the way to dark red."
He says he can make "wonderful things out of the other species such as pinks and chums."
One method is to marinate them over two days, dry and bake them "and they come out like sockeye."
He predicts the day will come when these species will be recognized for their worth because of their flavour, texture and ease of preparation.
Morley, of the Salmon Marketing Council, believes that the message of wild salmon and its potential should be passed to chefs in other parts of Canada. "I think that chefs are the leaders in trends like that and turning people on to new and quality food."
For more information, visit bcsalmon.ca.
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Topic: White springs fish of choice? Who would have thunk it? (Read 4760 times)