Your Letters on the week’s news
MAY I respond to Paul Smedley’s letter (January 15 issue) about double standards when it comes to supermarket carp?
While I initially shared Paul’s horror and outrage at seeing my local Tesco stocking mirror carp this Christmas, I soon realised that these will have been farmed and bred specifically for Tesco.
Each carp sold is one less that is being poached for the plate from our beloved waters.
Perhaps we should be encouraging our supermarkets to stock these ‘niche’ foods more regularly then, perhaps combined with more proactive enforcement and education, we can reduce the levels of poaching considerably. Alex Boyle, Llandrindod Wells
WHY on earth is Paul Smedley, (Letters, January 15 issue) complaining about carp being on sale for food?
They are no different from salmon or trout, which can be bred and farmed specifically for the table. Neo Petman, Thatcham
AS A carp and pleasure angler I do get furious when I see carp laid out on the fishmongers’ counter (Letters, January 15 issue).
However, we have to look at the positives of this. These fish, like many other animals we eat, should have been sourced from a sustainable fish farm and be destined for the cold counter of local fishmongers. This means that the delicacy that is carp (which our European friends eat) is readily available to them, which may help in the reduction of illegal poaching of this wonderful fish.
In essence, the carp is no different from all the other fish lying beside it on the slab – we just choose not to sell it because we are a nation of anglers who love and respect the carp, which can grow to some very impressive sizes and live for many decades. Andy Tarbet, Blackwater