A meal leads to research and discovery

Here in the marina in Brest, there is a lady who sells fresh seafood from a van. She sells various products, including the local seasonal speciality coquilles St. Jacques, or scallops. One day last week we bought a kilo of scallops in their shells, and steamed them with garlic and white wine for dinner. They were very fresh and very delicious.

As always when we see fishmongers, and before we buy seafood ourselves, it set me to thinking about the local ecology and economy. I set off to do a little research to understand the lifecycles of scallops, whether their stocks are sustainable, and to see what the scallop fishing situation is here in Brest.

I found out that the Bay of Brest scallop fishing industry is hugely important to the Breton economy, but was almost decimated by a harsh winter in the early 1960s. Apart from the starfish, the scallop has few natural predators in the Bay. It is however, like all shellfish, vulnerable to contaminants in the water. You could say that the major predator of the scallop is the fishermen. To avoid overfishing, there is tight control. Scallops may only be fished between October and March, and only those of over 10.5 cm diameter may be taken. It takes about three to four years for scallops to reach this diameter.

The natural scallop stocks in the Bay are boosted by farmed animals. The larvae are hatched in controlled conditions and remain there until they are one year old. The young scallops, called spats, are then placed in the Bay where they continue to grow for the next two to three years before being fished. In order to protect their livelihood, the fishermen take a leading role with research bodies and the authorities, to control the cultivation of scallops and the amount fished, thus ensuring that the scallop industry remains on its feet and remains an important economic contributor to the region.