Last Wednesday I joined Neil Perry (Rockpool, Spice Temple and The Waiting Room), the Spencer Gulf and West Coast Prawn Fishermens Association, the MSC, the WWF, national and local media, bloggers, and seafood industry heavyweights for lunch to celebrate the first MSC certified sustainable Spencer Gulf king prawn catch of the season.
Why the fuss? Well, MSC is the Marine Stewardship Council, an international body recognising and rewarding sustainable fishing. When a fishery has received the prestigious MSC certification it means that buyers can be assured that the fishery meets strict standards regarding sustainability and traceability.
The certification covers the fishery’s 39 vessels, which use the otter trawling method to catch around 2,000 metric tonnes of King Prawns each year. The wild caught prawns are sold mostly to markets in Australia and America, and also to South East Asia and the EU.
Australia-wide there are only a handful of fisheries to be MSC certified, including SA’s Lakes and Coorong Fishery, which was certified in 2008. But more significantly, the Spencer Gulf Prawn Association is the first prawn fishery to be MSC certified in the Asia Pacific and the first king prawn fishery to be certified in the world. So the Spencer Gulf prawn fisherman have every reason to be proud of their latest achievement.
The celebratory lunch was jointly hosted by the Spencer Gulf Prawn Association, the MSC and the WWF in the most inspired lunch setting – an open-air marquee set on the banks of the River Torrens (the marquee is in the background of the photo below).
The festivities kicked off at 12 noon with Spencer Gulf king prawn canapes, including a prawn cocktail and a prawn bisque.
After the key speakers arrived by boat – yes, really – it was time to find our seats in preparation for the speeches. Glenn Davis from the Spencer Gulf and West Coast Prawn Fishermen’s Association paid tribute to all the people and organisations involved in the certification process.
Perry was then invited to catch some of the newly certified Spencer Gulf King Prawns, which he and Dennis Leslie, Executive Chef at Hilton Adelaide, threw on the barbie.
Lunch was then served to the four tables of guests. Spencer Gulf king prawns were split and marinated in a delectable chilli and fresh herb mix before being charcoal roasted. The prawns were firm, sweet and flavoursome, with the chilli marinade providing a welcome kick without overwhelming the natural flavour of the prawn.
Sides were a lovely roast pumpkin salad with roasted capsicum, asparagus, basil, sage and cashew nuts, a garden salad with heirloom tomatoes and balsamic vinegar and saffron rice with orange zest, cranberries, sunflowers seeds, parsley and chives.
The dishes were so vibrantly coloured that they were instant mood-enhancers. And everything tasted so fresh and clean – it was a perfect menu for an outdoor lunch.
After lunch there were speeches from Patrick Caleo from the MSC and Cathy Llwellyn from WWF.
Then Amanda Blair from 5AA began her live broadcast and interview with Perry.
After the broadcast, I managed to grab a few words with Perry who told me that he’s been using Spencer Gulf king prawn in his acclaimed restaurants for years. “(The Spencer Gulf king prawn fishermen) have always worked in a such a sustainable way,” he said. “They only had to tweak a few things to get the MSC certification. It’s fantastic recognition for the work they do.”
I agree wholeheartedly. Congratulations to all involved.
