This article is about Atlantic cod (scientific name, Gadus morhua) which is found around all coastal areas of the North Atlantic Ocean. There is a similar fish called Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus) fished in great quantities around Alaska. But over here in Europe, we all think that's second best. Neither should be confused with black cod, which is a quite different and much pricier fish caught in only small quantities.

COD IS FANTASTICALLY FERTILE

Females of several fish species can lay a million or more eggs a year. But cod is amongst only a few species which can readily achieve body weights of 20 kilos or more, and these fish have a larger capacity. A big female cod can lay ten million eggs a year. Of course, most of these are simply eaten, including by cod, which is a cannibal. Nevertheless, the demographic potential is mind-boggling. And yet, as recent history has shown. we can undo it if we try.

The second factor was over-fishing, played out most starkly in the Grand Banks. After a century of landing about 250,000 tons of cod a year, a new generation of larger trawlers increased landings to 800,000 tons in the late 1960s. And then there were none: in 1992, the Canadian Government announced a moratorium on cod fishing (there was none to catch, anyway). This was intended to last for a couple of years to allow stocks to recover. But only 25 years later, are there some signs of a meaningful recovery.

It was a similar tale in the North Sea. Between 1960 and 1980 the cod catch quadrupled to 400,000 tons then shrank to 30,000 tons by 2005. Scientists recommended a moratorium; fishermen couldn't be persuaded to go that far but did limit their catches very substantially. Eventually, in 2017, scientists determined that the stock of cod in the North Sea could sustain the amount being caught, but still the catch remains only a fraction of historic levels. All this time however, Norway, Russia and Iceland, which had stringent sustainability policies, continued to supply cod to the UK where its popularity had never wavered.

Cod-farming? It's been tried - indeed we used to sell it, but our supplier went bust. So far as we are aware, no company has been able to make it work. In truth, the economics of farming require wild cod to be much more expensive by being fished to the limit. And, touch wood, that outcome seems to have been averted.

THE FISH SOCIETY'S COD RANGE

Our mainstay cod product has always been Norwegian frozen-at-sea fillets (filleted and frozen on the trawler within hours of capture). There are various grades of frozen at sea fillets including trawled fish (caught by net) and line-caught. We always buy line-caught when available but sometimes must buy trawled fish and we cannot always buy Norwegian, in which case we use Icelandic or Russian. We sell these frozen-at-sea fillets as whole fillets. Frozen-at-sea is widely recognised to be a premium product, much more expensive than a second supply category - cod which has been landed fresh for onshore processing and freezing.

We also sell fillet steaks and bullets of cod. These are from a third supply category - large fresh fillets marketed as fresh fillets. This is the most expensive form of cod, often coming from boats which have been at sea for only a day or two. We buy such fillets either from Norway, Iceland or from around our own coast, cutting them into our fillet steaks and bullets and freezing normally within a few hours of their arrival.

Skrei cod (pronounced skray) is special because it is super lean and very fit. It's caught in February and March when it arrives on the Norwegian coast after a strenuous thousand mile migration from the Arctic. We buy a large supply and have it available for most of the year.

Most of the cod consumed throughout history was salted - literally buried in salt for a few weeks to dry and preserve it. Salt cod or bacalao could be exported even to hot countries and remain palatable for years. Salting adds an extra dimension of taste so even though refrigeration overtook salting a century ago, salt cod remains popular in many countries. This item comes in many grades. We sell a superb boneless and skinless version crafted in Scotland.

Salt cod - or bacalao - how half the world eats its cod

The cod gives many products other than its basic fillets. Cod roes both fresh and smoked, cod liver, cod tongues and cod cheeks are all popular items with our customers. We also sell salt cod - or bacalao - in several forms. Cod heads are often available on our fish heads page. They make great soup.

WHAT'S IN IT?

The data below are averages. Individual fish could vary by 25%, reflecting seasonal and other factors.

Source: US Dept of Agriculture