This film is part of Free

Line-caught Haddock

A fisherman catches line-caught fish before it became a marketing tagline.

News 1971 1 mins

From the collection of:

Logo for South West Film and Television Archive

Overview

The haddock has a barb under its chin, a distinctive black line running down its side and a black spot above the pectoral fin sometimes called St Peter's mark. The North Atlantic fishery is an important one to the United Kingdom; Atlantic cod, haddock and plaice are staples of the fishery not least because the UK prizes its national dish of fish and chips.

The UK participated in cod wars with Iceland in the seventies but in the end was forced to recognise Iceland's 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone for its fishery. Line-caught cod or haddock is now considered a more sustainable way of catching fish because it is selective and is recognised by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). The MSC certifies a fishery and the fish sold from that fishery and publishes a list of endangered species, as does Greenpeace and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. Last century some traditional fishing grounds saw fish stocks collapse and livelihoods die out, other countries such as Iceland have managed to run a more sustainable fishery.