Atlantic Cod

It measures between 60 and 80 centimetres in length, and weighs up to 15 kilograms.

Cod meat is white and succulent, yet lean. Its flavour is mild and very tasty.

It can be found across the North Atlantic from Greenland to North Carolina, and from Spitsbergen to Biscay, as well as in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, the Norwegian Sea, the Labrador Sea, the Barents Sea, and the White Sea.

Cod is a migratory fish. It heads to colder regions to find food, and to warmer regions in the south for spawning. The full-grown cod is a vigorous predator that can chase shoals of herrings for miles.

It feeds on small animals like crawfish, clams, crabs and small fish. With age, it becomes a fish predator and also eats herrings, gurnards, flatfish and squid.

The cod has a prominent upper jaw and a strong beard thread on its chin, which serves as a sensory organ when foraging. Its body is covered in dark spots, giving it a slightly marble-like look.

Cod is both a delicacy and a “medicine”. It used to be believed to have miraculous healing powers because of its high vitamin content. Today, it is used in the pharmaceutical industry as a tonic.

pelagic otter trawls (OTM)

OTM is the abbreviation for the fishing method pelagic otter trawls. Pelagic otter trawls are designed for catching fish species that live in the open water. An otter trawl consists of a funnel-shaped body which ends in a pocket (the codend) and a large opening. The horizontal opening of the net is mainly achieved by two shearboards. The vertical opening is often achieved by buoyancy elements on the headline and weights on the bottom rope. However, modern nets nowadays do not need buoyancy aids. Pelagic otter trawls have no effect on the seabed because they do not usually touch it. In most cases, fishing is targeted at one species and by-catch rates of other species are very low ("pure" fishing). Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Northeast Atlantic

pelagic otter trawls (OTM)