MAY 2012
SALMON
The majority of farms have entered new generation stocks now and consequently this means that large 5kg+ fish are scarce. Volumes in general are stable, mostly of 2-5kg fish. Things should level out in a month or so as the weather starts to warm up. After that we are expecting to see an increase in volumes going into the summer and hopefully prices wil stabilise. In the past few years we have seen both Scottish and Norwegian Salmon prices at a similar level. Scottish volumes this year are not expected to increase as much as Norwegian, consequently we expect to see Scottish demanding a premium. Due to our contracts in place we will have no issues with volumes and availability in the coming months.
TUNA & SWORDFISH LOIN
Fresh Tuna prices are rising as we are now heading into the monsoon season where availability will be tight.
Swordfish loin is on promotion during May and we are currently sourcing it from Sri Lanka and the Seychelles from boats that target Swordfish rather than from the Tuna boats where it is considered a by-catch.
WHITE FISH
After the Easter break and the subsequent affect on supplies, we should now be seeing an increase in availability and hopefully stability in pricing, especially on Haddock. We will be entering the capelin season shortly, when the fish spawn and their flesh becomes quite soft. We proactively look to source from areas where the fish have finished spawning to avoid this.
Large Cod supplies look encouraging with decent landings expected from Iceland, the Faroes, Norway and Scotland, however codlings have been very difficult to source and this looks set to continue.
SEA BASS & BREAM
Prices are rising almost week on week. Due to financial constraints in Turkey and Greece, farmers could not afford to put in large quantities of fry. Additionally, because they experienced a colder winter than normal, the fish have not grown as well as expected. This has led to a shortage in Bass, especially on 600g+ fish. Unfortunately this does not bode well for the summer; prices could reach record highs and are unlikely to start falling before September.
DOVER SOLE
Our direct landings in to Wimborne from Tom Russell and the crew of the “Jessica Lynn” are due to continue in May. The Dovers in May swim eastwards into deeper waters and we will then switch into buying from larger boats who fish these areas.
LEMON SOLE
The inshore season will be opening up shortly around the Faroes and Iceland. This will lead to stabilised pricing and greater availability throughout the summer months. After a previous Splash promotion we have seen increased demand of the smaller 8-12oz fish. Supplies and quality on all sizes should be reasonable depending on weather conditions.
PLAICE
The end of May and beginning June, UK plaice will be at its prime. Availability should will be stable however, volumes on the larger sizes may be limited form the South Coast until we get towards the end of the month. Once June waters hit then Plaice are at their fattest and remain so through July and August and into the autumn, before they start to prepare for the spawning season.
BRILL
1-2lb brill are on promotion this month and we have some of the best quality fish available from Brixham and Plymouth markets, as well as our exclusive supply of day-boat fish being caught by the “Jessica Lynn” in
Poole.
WILD SEA BASS
Ian Taylor and the crew of the “Skin Deeper” are hoping to kick off the 2012 season towards the middle of May. They supply us with the finest wild Bass you can buy on the market – all landed directly to Wimborne branch within hours of being caught. The Bass are slush iced on board and individually tagged for full traceability back to the boat.
GREY MULLET
An under-utilised specie, these bottom feeders historically were caught in harbours and were often of a bad eating quality due to their rather muddy taste. We only source Grey Mullet caught out in the open waters; which gives a far higher eating quality than Mullet caught inshore.
TROUT
We are currently sourcing all our sea-reared fish from Scotland, mainly from farms around the Shetland Isles. This month we have 2kg+ fish on promotion, which are ideal for cutting portions to your customers’ requirements.We will also start to see wild Sea Trout becoming available towards the end of May as the season starts. Prices will be high to begin with, however should ease through the season.
For more information or prices, please either contact myself or your local branch
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