The Newfoundlanders
Men of legend, they left from Normandy ports, mainly Fécamp, to go to the banks off Canada during fishing campaigns that lasted for months.
Fécamp, until before the Second World War, was France's first port for cod fishing in Newfoundland.
The video presented at the end of this article, entitled "The Great Cod Fishery" is a film from the 1950s retracing the lives and very hard work of these sailors.
These activities themselves have led to others to dry fish, smoking, preparation, canning, trading and transport, and then, for future fishing campaigns, the work of the sea biscuit rope manufacturing companies, shipbuilding, etc., which are now being carried out.
All this rather artisanal work would not resist the arrival of factory ships that not only fished, but also prepared, packed, and froze at sea.
And then we finally got there: we emptied the sea! And the activity gradually died out due to overfishing... there's no need to say, we're very strong!
Shall we taste it? Memories, memories...
As a result, this cod, the poor man's fish, almost became a luxury fish! Techniques for smoking it, among others, became more and more elaborate, and these techniques benefited other fish.
In Fécamp, "Le Bouquet Normand" mainly marketed products from local salting. And then, later on, as things evolved, the son and grandson of the brand's founder decided to create the first commercial site dedicated to these products, a sales site... online!
But, of course, if you go through Fécamp, forget about the computer screen for a while, and go and visit the shop, for pleasure, for memories, and maybe for nostalgia... a little bit.
« Le Bouquet Normand »
1 rue de la Barricade
76400 Fécamp
Tél. : 02 27 30 28 95
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