The Isle of Mull based Ethical Shellfish Company, which is known for their hand dived scallops, have announced that they're setting up a delivery service for seafood fans in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
After testing the water and asking about interest in shellfish delivery the decision was made to start the service in June.
Romans!-we invade on June 6th delivering Fridays onwards. To your door by us. No poly boxes just card board & direct from the sea.1st runs are to Glasgow and Edinburgh. Just DM me for action! Mussels & dived scallops & oysters to start then all shellfish soon. #edinburgh #glasgow pic.twitter.com/gKWw8isKTc
— Guy Grieve (@guygrieve) May 20, 2020
Currently the team are offering: Isle of Mull rope grown mussels, hand dived scallops, and Loch Creran oysters with more shellfish will follow.
The scallops are priced £1.50 each for medium £1.50 and large £2 each.
Mussels are £11.50 for a 5kg bag and oysters are £1.10 each.
Delivery is free for orders over £30 but anything below, delivery is £10.
The shellfish will be delivered via a refrigerated van and in cardboard boxes, not polystyrene.
Orders are being taken now via Twitter or by emailing juliet@ethicalshellfishcompany.co.uk
Delivery will start on 6 June and be available on Fridays from then on.
Produce from the Ethical Shellfish Company is sought-after due to their environmentally friendly method, and is usually only available in high end restaurants.
To find out how to shuck scallops and for an easy recipe, check out the BBC's The Great Food Guys.
This move comes after news earlier in May that the seafood industry was facing a huge crisis due to the lack of retailers selling their produce and the complete shutdown of the hospitality industry.
Seafood Scotland, on behalf of the Scottish seafood sector, wrote to the chief executives of the main UK supermarket retailers, urging them to reopen their fresh fish counters.
With international markets closed off, and the UK restaurant/catering sector largely shut down, the entire sector is relying on retail for survival, but most of the fresh fish counters in major multiple retailers have been closed for weeks. Only Morrisons has reopened its fresh counters - in a welcome move to support the meat and fish sectors.
In the letter, sent to the leaders of ASDA, Sainsbury’s and Tesco, Donna Fordyce, Head of Seafood Scotland, says: “It is imperative that fish counters are reopened to allow consumers access to fresh, locally caught seafood from the domestic market as part of their essential shop.”
The Scottish seafood sector has been devastated by the impact of the coronavirus. The Scottish seafood industry landed around 450,000 tonnes of sea fish and shellfish from around 2000 vessels. 150 processing sites employ over 13,000 staff.
With an estimated 60 per cent drop in demand, the industry is suffering, and fishing families and the wider communities that rely on the sector are facing real economic hardship.
Why we should all 'buy local' to support Scotland's food industry -James Withers
