A PROJECT to introduce live shellfish tanks on the harbourside at Looe has received a cash boost.

Wholesaler Blue Sail Fish has already installed four tanks at Buller Quay, investing around £30,000 so far.

With Government support of just over £70,000 through the Domestic Seafood Supply Fund, the facility is set to expand to 10 tanks by the end of August – more than doubling its capacity for live lobsters and crabs.

Brothers François and Antoine Ravin, who purchased Blue Sail Fish in 2019, are excited about the opportunities the new tanks will bring to the local fishing fleet – and their significance in making Looe unique in this part of the South West.

The use of live tanks means that the supply of shellfish can be stabilised – a good thing for the fishermen, the buyer and the customer, says François.

Those already catching shellfish can take on a few more pots, and the resource can be sustainably managed, with fishing far less disrupted by bad weather, as crabs and lobster can live in the tanks for several weeks.

‘If you want to be in the shellfish business, you have to have live tanks,’ he said.

‘It makes the whole business easier as you know the lobster and crab is going to arrive live to your customer.

‘We’re also adding value to the product because we look after it.

‘Staying in a live tank is an important step that you shouldn’t miss out – it purifies the inside of the animal.’

Simon Pascoe, who grew up in Liskeard, worked alongside Blue Sail Fish to prepare the successful funding bid.

He said: ‘Keeping economic activity going in the harbour is vital.

‘We very much see this as a pilot project for Looe, and we hope to see it catch on and become something that can sustain livelihoods on smaller boats.’

Both Simon and François said they were grateful to harbour master Tina Hicks and the Looe Harbour Commission for their support, and to Councillors Armand Toms and Edwina Hannaford who had been very helpful.

François belives that if live shellfish proves as successful as it should do in Looe, it has the potential to provide diversification and job opportunities for more fishermen.

And with no live tanks in this end of Cornwall or in Plymouth, it gives Looe a unique selling point in the supply chain, which should boost the town’s already excellent reputation for seafood. Shellfish can also be prepared and cooked at the shed on the harbour, meaning that catch is not wasted if it dies, and customers are offered a wider choice.

For the Ravin brothers, branching out in Looe is part of a natural progression from the early days of their careers ‘when we were looking for jobs near the sea so we could surf’.

Antoine brings a lot of experience in shellfish, having founded his wholesaling company L’Argonaute in the seafood capital of northern France, Boulogne-Sur-mer, in 2006, and operating live tanks at Cherbourg for the past three years.

Meanwhile, François has a great attachment to Looe, having lived in the town from 2003 to 2009, sailing Redwings and working for Blue Sail with previous owner Steve Farrar to build up fish exports from the harbour.