Among other seafoods, the bay mussel has been the subject of intense interest by the fishermen and marine managers of a company known under the unforgettable name of Kinkawooka, reports the CourierMail.
What's different about these mussels? A lot, the news agency says. Firstly, they are grown like many mussels on long lines dangling at five different sites across the bay, but that's where the similarities end. These mussels are left for betwen nine and 12 months to mature and are regularly checked.
The fishermen have undergone taste training, similar to a wine-tasting course, so they can identify when the mussels are at their absolute best. They take a sample from each line and cook them on board. They check the mussel for sweetness, saltiness, matching a flavour profile developed within the company. They then identify the optimum line for harvest. The next day the harvest team performs the same taste test, as mussels are dynamic and may have changed in as little as 24 hours. If the harvest team finds the same results as the tasting team they are then reeled in for the next process.
The molluscs arrive at a processing plant where they are placed in a scrubbing machine. They emerge from the cleaning not only gleaming black but beardless.
Quality Mussels at Boston Bay
AUSTRALIA - Boston Bay on the west coast of South Australia is a bay of plenty. Three-and-a-half times the size of Sydney Harbour, Boston Bay has been quietly playing host to some extraordinary goings-on in aquaculture.