The aim of Enterprise North East is to get the message across that anyone can start up in business and anyone can be a success.
Published on the first Friday of every month in The Journal.
Smoking thrills
Jul 21 2006
By Enterprise North East
Ian Brown, senior lecturer in Food Studies at Northumbria University, praises the kipper.
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One of life's greatest pleasures - a drive along Northumbria's spectacular coastline to Craster for a couple of pints in the Jolly Fisherman, followed by one of the most invigorating, breathtaking walks imaginable along the cliffs to Dunstanburgh Castle.
It's worth it for the fresh crab sandwiches waiting in the pub, then across the road to buy a couple of pairs of freshly smoked kippers from Neil Robson's smokehouse. Neil is the fourth generation of the Robson family to specialise in the traditional method of oak smoking kippers and this year the company celebrates its centenary.
Craster kippers are considered to be among the finest in the world. The plumpest of herring with exactly the right oil content are split down the back and soaked in brine then smoked over smouldering whitewood shavings and oak sawdust for 16 hours.
However, the world's first kipper was produced in 1843 at Seahouses, just up the road, by John Woodger who, having split a herring in a shed near a smouldering fire forgot about it until the next day. The "ruined" fish became a worthy mistake and herrings are still "kippered" to this day in Seahouses by Swallow Fish Ltd. Friendly rivalry exists as to the better product - Craster or Seahouses - due to different sourcing of the herring and smoking methods. Which is the better of these two nutritional wonders from an organoleptic perspective? The coarser, brinier Craster variety preferred by The Queen, or the juicy, plump, more pink Seahouses sort?
According to the Dutch - they are rarely wrong - and their proverb: "If the herring is around the doctor is far away," is not far off the mark. Quite simply, herring are excellent nutrition. There is no sugar and they are very high in protein, selenium and vitamins A, D and B12.
However, it is the fat content which is so positive towards health and wellbeing. Several studies have now confirmed that omega-3 fatty acids are so beneficial. The adult daily requirement is estimated to be 0.3-0.4 grams. Herring contains more than one gram per 100 gram serving. Since 2000, the American Heart Association has recommended two portions of oily fish per week to maintain heart health as it contains two valuable omega 3s, EPA and DHA.
A study at the Harvard School of Public Health in Boston confirmed that women with Type 2 diabetes, who ate oily fish regularly, had significantly lower risk of coronary heart disease than those who rarely consumed it. Similarly, fish oils have also been shown to improve insulin function in overweight people, who are of course vulnerable to diabetes. The self-same omega-3s have also been shown to reduce the risk of irregular heartbeats which can lead to sudden death, decrease blood triglyceride levels, improve the function of blood vessels and reduce blood clot formation.
A mother to be, who eats oily fish during the later stages of pregnancy, is less likely to have a very small baby, according to researchers at Bristol University in 2004. And if that doesn't cheer you up, the evidence for the benefits of fatty acids from herring is so strong that its chemical make-up is to be replicated by pharmaceutical companies to develop anti-depressant drugs. Eat kippers - be happy.
