The Irish shellfish industry 1948-1967

Abstract

The term shellfish is used to group together two very large orders of the animal kingdom, namely the Crustacea and the Molluscs. These orders are not closely related to each other; the main characteristics they have in common being that neither of' them has an internal supporting structure or skeleton. However, they live in similar environments, mainly in the sea, although a few inhabit fresh water, Many hundreds of individual species occur in Irish waters, but only a small number of these are commercially important. These include lobsters, crawfish, Dublin Bay prawns (Nephrops), crabs (all crustaceans), periwinkles, oysters, escallops, mussels, cockles, whelks and clams (all molluscs). During the twenty year period 1948 to 1967, reviewed in this paper, the Irish shellfish industry has changed in many respects. In some sectors methods of fishing have been improved, farming techniques have been introduced and the development of markets on Continental Europe has encouraged the use of improved methods of handling and transport of shellfish to these distant destinations, Nevertheless the rate of expansion of the shellfish industry has been comparatively slow.