Saithe (Pollachius virens, Sei, Lieu noir, Köhler)

Season: All year
Size: Up to 120 cm

The fish
Saithe is both a pelagic fish and a demersal fish, living at depths of between 0 and 300 metres. It swims in shoals, which can be enormous in good habitats with plenty of food.
Saithe spawn along the coastal banks from the Lofoten islands and south and in the North Sea. The saithe fry then drift northwards, carried by the coastal currents, and young saithe start to appear in the south and south-west of Norway in the spring, arriving in Finnmark as late as August. Saithe migrate huge distances from their feeding and growing grounds to their spawning grounds.

Fishery
Saithe is an important commercial species in Norway. Fishing for saithe is performed in coastal waters and in the far north to the west of North Cape. In the fjords and off the coast of Finnmark in the north, saithe is caught using seine nets. In addition, the North Sea and banks off the coast of western Finnmark are also good fishing grounds.
The saithe found in Norwegian waters can be divided into two main groups, with 62º N marking the line between them. The stocks north of this latitude have remained relatively stable, whereas the stocks south of this line have recently been found to be under their minimum biologically acceptable level (the precautionary principle to marine fisheries).

Fishing methods
Bottom trawling, Danish seine nets, purse seine, nets, handlines.

Use
Saithe is sold fresh, dried and salted. By-products include liver and fish liver oil.

Nutritional value
Like the other fish in the cod family, saithe is an outstanding source of protein. It is also rich in vitamin B12 and selenium and has a healthy balance of sodium and potassium

 

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