Fish
Flemish fishermen catch fish, crustaceans and molluscs each year. This is not a huge amount, since catches are restricted by the EU quota - yet the variety of fish landed is greater.
Small fishing fleet
The Flemish fishing fleet may be the smallest of any EU member state with a sea border, but it is highly professional in the way it catches and lands its fish. Flemish fishermen make a point of only marketing the very freshest fish. The fairly small-scale nature of the Flemish fishing industry allows the fishermen to process their catches in a traditional way.
Quality assurance is the absolute top priority: on the ships themselves, in the fish markets and in the processing industry.
Fish from the North Sea
The Flemish fishing industry specialises in catching sole from the North Sea, which is the most important fish in terms of value. Plaice remains the most caught fish in terms of tonnage.
Coastal fishing, in which boats go out at night to hunt the tasty North Sea shrimp, is a separate sector. The shrimps are cooked at sea and sold at the market a few hours later.
Further inland, Flanders has a flourishing fresh water fish industry, breeding mainly salmon trout, rainbow trout, eels and carp. There are also various large-scale aquaculture projects for sea fish, crustaceans and molluscs.
Small fishing fleet
The Flemish fishing fleet may be the smallest of any EU member state with a sea border, but it is highly professional in the way it catches and lands its fish. Flemish fishermen make a point of only marketing the very freshest fish. The fairly small-scale nature of the Flemish fishing industry allows the fishermen to process their catches in a traditional way.
Quality assurance is the absolute top priority: on the ships themselves, in the fish markets and in the processing industry.
Fish from the North Sea
The Flemish fishing industry specialises in catching sole from the North Sea, which is the most important fish in terms of value. Plaice remains the most caught fish in terms of tonnage.
Coastal fishing, in which boats go out at night to hunt the tasty North Sea shrimp, is a separate sector. The shrimps are cooked at sea and sold at the market a few hours later.
Further inland, Flanders has a flourishing fresh water fish industry, breeding mainly salmon trout, rainbow trout, eels and carp. There are also various large-scale aquaculture projects for sea fish, crustaceans and molluscs.
