Cornish Sardines

Appearance & taste

The back has a metallic green or olive sheen, the flanks are golden, the belly is a shiny silvery white. In the upper part of the flanks there is a row of dark spots, sometimes with a second or third below it. The size varies with the season; one kilogram must contain 9 to 18 fish.

When fresh, the flesh is firm and fine, but above 1 °C it quickly softens and loses quality rapidly as the temperature rises. How intense it tastes depends on freshness and fat content. Fresh fish are shiny and plump, smell fresh, have largely intact scales and dark pink or red gills. According to the specification they are best in late summer, when the flesh is particularly succulent and full-flavoured.

Production

The fish are caught within the district of the Cornwall Inshore Fisheries and Conservation Authority, which extends from Marsland Mouth on the north coast to the Plymouth Breakwater on the south coast and covers all waters up to six miles offshore. They are landed and processed in Cornwall or in the port area of Plymouth (postcode PL4). Boats from one port or a group of businesses traditionally work together as a team.

Because the fish are delicate, they must be landed as quickly as possible after being caught. Whole fresh sardines are dispatched on ice in cool boxes, the rest are frozen and stored in boxes or bags. Processing means filleting, heading, gutting, freezing, marinating and salting. In the past each port had its own “fish cellars” for storage and processing; today factories on industrial estates have taken over this task, all within the area.

Origin & history

The sardines move into the shallow bays off Cornwall, where they are caught. According to the specification, temperatures, tides and the phytoplankton they feed on are determined above all by the North Atlantic Oscillation. In the past “scouts” on the cliffs watched the coast, reported the shoals and directed the boats to them with a semaphore telegraph; fishing took place only within sight of the lookouts. Today modern technology does the searching, but the boats stay within sight of the coast. The return of the fishing boats was an event at which the local people helped to bring in the catch.

The first documented exports of salted sardines, then “pilchards”, left from the harbour town of Looe in 1555. In the 17th and 18th centuries they became an important part of Cornwall’s fishing industry. The largest landings, about 16,000 t, were in 1871. The main buyers were the Catholic countries of Europe, above all Italy; in northern Italy the fish were called “Salacche Inglesi”.