Produits de la mer - n°171 - avril 2017 - 107

Dossier ❘ MAQUEREAU

Fresh mackerel:
some room for growth remains

his is a fact: French people mainly
consume tinned mackerel. As far
as fresh fish is concerned, it is far
from being their favourite species. According to Kantar Worldpanel from
FranceAgriMer, fresh mackerel consumption remained slightly under 5,000 tons
in 2015, when at the same time, more
than 18,600 tons of tinned mackerel were
eaten. Only 12.4% of French households
bought fresh fish, when one French person out of two purchased it from the tinned food shelf. Yet, fresh mackerel has
a lot of good points. This oily fish, rich in
omega-3 fatty acids, possesses an easily
identifiable taste and it can avail itself of
a very reasonable price: €6.20/kg on average in 2015. It is still the case, even if the
product has also been affected by a sudden rise in prices. In the Rungis wholesale
market, the price of the mackerel catch

unloaded by an average French trawler,
has gone from €2.30 to €3.50/kg between
January and December 2016. This means
a 56% rise which is far from being next to
nothing! The wholesale price of mackerel
from French line fishing boats, went up
from €4.20 to €5.20/kg.
Such an increase in prices can be to the
detriment of the appeal of the species and
its visibility. Within the fish range of a fishmonger or a supermaket, mackerel does
not seem as "vital" as cod or salmon, for
example.. Consequently, the shop might
example
give it up without too much hes
hesitation.
itation.
Managers of fish counters will count on
seasonal peaks in demand and present it
exclusively when it is mostly consumed,
that is to say Spring and Summer, when
barbecues are out in the garden.

Don't forget to give recipes!
The presence of mackerel on the fish
counter is spoiled by its fragility: its very
short shelf-life implies many logistics
problems. "A small mackerel deteriorates in
a few hours while a bigger one can be kept
for two or three days, which explains why the
demand for this grade is higher," Henri Marie,
manager of Quesney Marée in Trouvillesur-Mer (Calvados) points out. Finally, a
potential for progression may be found
in younger consumers, offering them differently shaped portions, like sardines dis-

L.F.

Only one in eight French
people buy fresh mackerel,
despite its obvious
beneficial properties.
Cutting fillets or developing
a quality approach:
everything helps in
attracting new consumers.

4,910

tons

of fresh mackerel
bought for home
consumption in
2015 at an average
price of €5.80/kg in
supermarkets (73.8%
of the volumes
purchased) and at
€6.90/kg in town
markets (13.9% of the
volumes purchased).

played in butterfly fillets, or promoting
new recipes. Court-bouillon cooking is
not as popular as it used to be while cooking "en
"en papillote"
papillote" is all the rage. Counting
on quality and local production is generally relevant, as it reassures consumers. This
is the approach chosen for the "mackerel
from Trouville", launched a year and a half
ago. Ten fishing boats and two wholesale
fish merchants, including Quesney Marée,
took part in the process in 2016 for an
amount of 250 tons, identified and commercialized. ■

Le maquereau de Trouville joue la qualité

e saviez-vous ? 25 % de la production française de maquereau est normande. Pour valoriser au
mieux ces débarques, une démarche qualité « Maquereau de Trouville » a été initiée en 2013
et a pris forme en juillet 2015.
Dans le cahier des charges, validé par les pêcheurs et les mareyeurs, le maquereau de Trouville
doit être issu de la pêche artisanale réalisée dans une zone de pêche bien définie. « Les navires
côtiers sortent le plus souvent 12 heures, au maximum 24 heures, précise Dominique Lamort, chargé
de la démarche au sein de Normandie Fraîcheur Mer. La durée du trait de chalut est elle aussi assez
courte, pour ne pas comprimer ou écraser le poisson, quand les captures d'un gros chalutier pélagique
peuvent se chiffrer en dizaines de tonnes par trait de chalut. » Toujours dans un souci de qualité, la
conservation à bord est réalisée dans de petites caisses de 6 ou 10 kg maximum. Par définition,
le maquereau de Trouville correspond à la qualité E (Extra), qui se vend de 30 à 35 % de plus que
la qualité A. Étiquettes, flashcodes et affiches permettent l'identification du produit.

PRODUITS DE LA MER N°171 AVRIL 2017

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Table des matières de la publication Produits de la mer - n°171 - avril 2017