Fish Express

a anywhere between three days to three months
By the time the trawler reaches the shore with the catch, the fish could be as old as several weeks and already frozen
This fish is bought by a whole sale dealer who then supplies the fish to several cities by road
To ensure that the fish remain fresh, the standard practice among most Indian fish suppliers is to apply chemicals such as ammonia, chlorine or formalin in the fish (yes - the same formalin used to preserve cadavers in the morgue!) Lets call this fish “Chem-Fish” for now
What is wrong with Chem-Fish? There are enough studies to show that chemicals have long term adverse health effects. Also, when your fish is so old it can lead to unexpected food poisoning, allergies and even serious ailments. Above all, it isn’t fish when its that’s old and contaminated with chemicals! Fresh fish has a remarkably different and wonderful taste/texture compared to the Chem-Fish but unfortunately the city population today does not get a chance to savor the goodness of Fresh Fish
Here is something you may not fully under-stand as a consumer — The price of fish keeps fluctuating on a daily basis, the variation in price can be pretty drastic depending on multiple parameters, so on a day when there is a huge landing of say Seer fish, the price could drop by a few hundred rupees
With eye on profit, the wholesaler buys maximum amount of fish when the prices are rock bottom, applies chemicals for preservation and puts them into large industry grade freezers. Then they are released into the market in smaller quantities over weeks and months
The story is worse for most restaurant and hotels. Their purchase philosophy is driven by a procurement tender system to beat the same price fluctuation where the lowest quoted price for a year is given preference over almost every-thing else. So their suppliers buy fish when the prices are at the lowest, put them into deep freezers, and are able to manage delivering the fish at a constant price through out the year. We will let you in on a little secret that is common among fish insiders — some of the fish that are in great demand in the hotel industry today are in freezers for up to 5-6 months
So it is sad but true that most likely, the fish you are eating has been out of the sea for at least a minimum of a week or in the worst case 5-6 months and in some cases is drenched with chemicals powerful enough to keep even the human body preserved!