LUXTON SINGLES OUT 'BLUE-RIBBON' ROCK LOBSTER FOR PRAISE.

  • John Luxton
Food, Fibre, Biosecurity and Border Control

Yesterday at the Seafood Industry Conference in Auckland, Food and Fibre Minister, Hon John Luxton endorsed industry's proposed use of blue-ribbon tags to identify quality crayfish.

The tags are a sign of quality just as gold medal labels on bottles of wine.

"Our rock lobster industry is a very valuable one and the use of tags is a step towards shutting down illegal activity".

Every tag has a unique number which enables the rock lobster to be traced back to the fisherman who caught it. They are a new initiative and provide proof to the consumer that rock lobsters are legally caught, harvested sustainably, handled in accordance with a strick code of production practice and stored humanely.

The tags are constructed so that they cannot be removed and are non-toxic which means that the tag can remain on the crayfish when it is cooked.

"I commend the industry on their initiative and innovation and am pleased to see industry taking an active role in the protection of our fisheries".