HUNTING HALIBUT THE TRADITIONAL WAY

LUXURY FISH: Halibut from the world’s purest waters around the Ilulissat glacier, is served up in Western Europe’s most fashionable restaurants 72 hours after Greenland’s fishermen have made the catch

It is six in the morning, and a fisherman sets off over the ice covered fiord with his sledge pulled by 12 huskies. It is dark because it is so far north – by the foot of the world’s largest glacier around Ilulissat in northern Greenland – the sun does not rise over the horizon for three months of the year. It is extremely cold, minus 32 degrees Celsius, and the fisherman is dressed accordingly. Boots made of several layers of sealskin keep his feet dry and warm, and his trouser and sweaters are made from wool and sealskin. These are the clothes Greenland’s fisherman have worn for centuries, made and adjusted to the tough and inhospitable climate of the world’s largest island, where less than 55,000 inhabitants live.

A deep water wonder
A couple of kilometres out across the ice, the fisherman reaches his workplace. For weeks in advance he has been knocking a hole in the metre thick ice. Now he breaks through the newly formed layer of ice in the hole, and carefully lowers his line down into the ice cold water. Down in the depths below him are halibut, one of the world’s gastronomic wonders.

     The fish take the bait and there are lots of them, varying in size from 2 to 10 kilos, and often a lot larger. They live in the fiord that functions as an outlet for the glacier which every day produces a volume of ice corresponding to New York’s annual water consumption. It is clean water originating from snow that fell 30,000 years ago, which has been compressed into ice. This enormous ice mass produces millions of tons of water and biomass, and creates the foundation for the halibut’s living conditions.

Freshly caught
Later in the day the catch is tallied. The 400 kilos of fresh halibut are packed on the dog sledge, and then the journey back to Ilulissat begins. At the town’s new fishing factory, the day’s catch is skinned and filleted within two hours, packed in ice, and flown to Europe’s top restaurants.

     72 hours after the fishing line descended into the ice hole, this fine fish is being served for discerning restaurant goers in Paris, Hamburg, Madrid and Rome.

INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION TO ROYAL GREEN-LAND COOKBOOK The ’Shrimps & Greenland halibuts’ cookbook from Royal Greenland, with foreword by His Royal Highness Prince Henrik, top scorer at cookbook ’Oscar’ awards.       More than 320 books from 29 countries participated in the finals where the Royal Greenland cookbook came in second in the category “Best Fish Cookbooks”. The Gourmand World Cookbook Awards received a total of 5,000 books from 67 countries. The books were divided into 32 categories.       On ’Shrimps and Greenland halibuts’ the jury said: “A unique book, one of the worlds two best fish cookbooks this year”. Marketing Manager Lisbeth Laursen from Royal Greenland is pleased with the recognition and says: “In my opinion a good book is characterized by the ’writer’s’ personality, and it is then the style of the book which makes the difference and defines a winner.” She adds: “When planning the book we managed – besides the many recipes – to communicate the unique soul of Greenland, and thus the unique products on which the shrimp and Greenland halibut recipes are based – recipes which have been developed by young cooks from the number one gourmet country, France. This combination of genuine, clean raw materials from the sea around Greenland and international, innovative thinking by the young, French cooks has made the book unique and taken it to the top of the ’Oscar’ awards.” The book has also been published in French (“Crevettes & Flétan”) in 30,000 copies and distributed to restaurants etc. In Denmark the book has become a sales success as part of the big Royal Greenland campaigns in 2004. Lisbeth Laursen promises new and remarkable campaigns in 2005 –and the success of the book has indeed encouraged Royal Greenland to work even more with recipe books as according to Lisbeth Laursen such a process is an important part of the creative process of developing new, innovative products and applications.

UNIQUE SHRIMPS ROYAL GREENLAND: Cutter Shrimps are caught by small fishing cutters which bring them ashore the same day Royal Greenland is now launching Cutter Shrimps, which are of extra fine quality because of unique growth conditions and a special catching method. A new, free cookery book is being published concurrently to encourage a healthy interest in the fruits of the sea. – We want to show that Cutter Shrimps are not just another name, but shrimps which have been lifted from the depths by cutters close to land and not by large industrial trawlers which are out at sea for several weeks, says Royal Greenland’s head of marketing Lisbeth Laursen. Just like good wine, a lot of conditions affect the quality of the shrimp: Unique growth conditions, catching method and gentle handling are of the greatest importance. Royal Greenland’s shrimps are frozen only once from catch to serving, which is a crucial part of the quality experience.

THE QUEEN OF THE SEAS Like salmon, herring and mackerel, halibut has a very high content of unsaturated omega-3 fatty acids. It was Danish researchers who discovered the unique prophylactic effect of these substances on coronary thrombosis. This disease is very rare among Greenlanders, and the reason why was found in their diet, which consists mainly of fish and seal meat.      Linecaught Greenland halibut is larger and of far better eating quality than others. This is due to the fish’s slow growth in the ice cold, crystal clear waters of northern Greenland. It gives firm white flesh – without a single bone.      Until very recently Royal Greenland and PolarFish were the only exporters of frozen Greenland halibut. Now the newly established Greenland Glacier Seafood A/S has also started exporting the fish, which is flown fresh to Europe by Air Greenland.

 

UNIQUE ENVIRONMENT Ilulissat fiord is a fascinating and dramatic natural environment, unequalled in the world. This is where the majestic icebergs are produced, which move south along Greenland’s west coast before ending their days in the Atlantic Sea. The glacier itself consists of enormous ice masses which are pushed out from the Greenland ice sheet at a rate of several metres per day. Snow falls on the ice sheet all year round. The 3 kilometre thick ice cap has been compressed into a dense mass over millennia, and this pressure forces the ice out into the fiord. The ice fiord complex and the glacier itself have been placed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The adjacent town of Ilulissat, with its 5,000 inhabitants, is the largest habitation in northern Greenland. The town is also a centre for Greenland’s fledgling tourism industry. http://www.ilulissat.gl