FOGO ISLAND FISH
Fogo Island Community
Founded by Fogo Islander Anthony Cobb and his wife, Janice Thomson, Fogo Island Fish is now a Shorefast social business. Our cod fishers receive higher compensation for their catch, and we work directly with the Fogo Island Co-operative Society Ltd.—a community-owned enterprise located in Fogo, Little Seldom and Joe Batt's Arm—to catch and process a variety of seafood products.
Currently most domestic seafood is exported. Buying Canadian food in Canada lightens the carbon footprint of the fish on your plate. We want to ensure the best of our North Atlantic bounty can be enjoyed by restaurant clientele and home cooks in Canada too.
Wild Northern Cod
Fogo Island cod is firm and buttery, thanks to the cold and fast-moving waters of the Labrador current. Fogo Island Fish believes that utilizing every part of the cod is essential and they honour the work that goes into fishing and preparation of each cod. The cod is caught using hand lines, and flash frozen to maintain peak freshness. Hand lining also means there is no by-catch.
Meta4Foods offers succulent loins (filets), cheeks, tongues, and collars that are truly the chicken wings of the sea.
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Since they are so close to the island, the cod is processed within hours of being caught by cooperatively owned processing facility on Fogo Island. That’s where they filet, debone and package the cod, which employs more people from the island.
The Cod Loins is the finest of cuts of a cod fish. They are cut from the middle section (or fattest part) of the fillet, known for being very moist, flaky, and sweet in flavour.
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The fishers only go out 5 miles from the coast in small day boats, where they catch 500-600 lbs of fresh fish per day, in sight of home. The fish is caught just once per year (in the fall) which means the fish are at their physiological peak.
The cod cheek is the size of a large sea scallop, with a firmer texture than cod fillet, they cook up wonderfully pan-seared, or with your favourite breading and fried, served with a dipping sauce of your choice.
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Cod tongues are a maritime delicacy known for its rich, savoury flavour. The tongue is a little flap of flesh in the back of the cod’s throat and have a texture somewhat like a scallop and prepares up beautifully.
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The collar is a very succulent cut of the fish and is the meat between the cod's cheek and belly.
WILD SNOW CRAB
FOGO Island’s snow crab is exceptionally sweet, beautifully briny, and meaty, as they bring in only the largest sized crabs. The snow crab is harvested from May through early June each year by dayboat fishers and processed within 24 hours of being caught as this ensures the crab is freshest at its peak.
Wild Northern Pink Shrimp
FOGO Island’s Northern Pink Shrimp is traditionally fished from June to July and is especially sweet thanks to the frigid waters surrounding Fogo Island. These little gems of the sea are light and buttery, lending themselves well to salads or to finish a pasta dish. The shrimp is cooked and peeled, then flash frozen to ensure maximum freshness.
The fishers go out in small inshore boats, and they bring back the last trawl of the day, to ensure the highest quality product for your table.
Wild Turbot
FOGO Island’s turbot, also known as Greenland halibut, is a dense yet delicate and is sold as a whole fish, gutted and head off—or head on (for younger and smaller fish). It is fished about 200km off the northern coast of Fogo Island, between Fogo and Greenland, caught in trawl nets, and bycatch is managed closely and returned to the ocean.