Sardine Explained

Sardine and pilchard are common names for various species of small, oily forage fish in the herring family Clupeidae.[1] The term 'sardine' was first used in English during the early 15th century; a somewhat dubious etymology says it comes from the Italian island of Sardinia, around which sardines were once supposedly abundant.[2] [3] [4]

The terms 'sardine' and 'pilchard' are not precise, and what is meant depends on the region. The United Kingdom's Sea Fish Industry Authority, for example, classifies sardines as young pilchards.[5] One criterion suggests fish shorter in length than 15cm (06inches) are sardines, and larger fish are pilchards.[6]

The FAO/WHO Codex standard for canned sardines cites 21 species that may be classed as sardines.[7] FishBase, a database of information about fish, calls at least six species pilchards, over a dozen just sardines, and many more with the two basic names qualified by various adjectives.

Etymology

The word 'sardine' first appeared in English in the 15th century, a loanword from French French: sardine, derived from Latin Latin: sardina, from Ancient Greek Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: σαρδίνη (sardínē) or Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: σαρδῖνος (sardĩnos),[8] possibly from the Greek Greek, Modern (1453-);: Σαρδώ (Sardō) 'Sardinia'. Athenaios quotes a fragmentary passage from Aristotle mentioning the fish Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: σαρδῖνος (sardĩnos), referring to the sardine or pilchard.[9] However, Sardinia is over 1000 km from Athens, so it seems "hardly probable that the Greeks would have obtained fish from so far as Sardinia at a time relatively so early as that of Aristotle."[10]

The flesh of some sardines or pilchards is a reddish-brown colour similar to some varieties of red sardonyx or sardine stone; this word derives from Greek, Ancient (to 1453);: σαρδῖον (sardĩon) with a root meaning 'red' and possibly cognate with Sardis, the capital of ancient Lydia (now western Turkey) where it was obtained. However, the name may refer to the reddish-pink colour of the gemstone sard (or carnelian) known to the ancients.[11]

The phrase "packed like sardines" (in a tin) is recorded from 1911. The phrase "packed up like sardines" appears in The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction from 1841,[12] and is a translation of "encaissés comme des sardines", which appears in French: La Femme, le mari, et l'amant from 1829.[13] Other early appearances of the idiom are "packed together ... like sardines in a tin-box" (1845),[14] and "packed ... like sardines in a can" (1854).[15]

Genera

Sardines occur in several genera.

Although they are not true sardines, sprats are sometimes marketed as sardines. For example, the european sprat, Sprattus sprattus, is sometimes marketed as the 'brisling sardine'.

Species

Commercially significant species
GenusCommon nameScientific nameMax. lengthTyp. lengthMax. massMax. age
years		Trophic
level		Fish-
Base		FAOITISIUCN
status
cmincmingoz
SardinaEuropean pilchardSardina pilchardus (Walbaum, 1792)27.5cm (10.8inches)20cm (10inches)153.05[16]
[17]
SardinopsSouth American pilchardSardinops sagax (Jenyns, 1842)39.5cm (15.6inches)20cm (10inches)490g252.43[18]
[19]
Japanese pilchardSardinops melanostictus (Schlegel, 1846)style=background:#efe; colspan=2 style=background:#efe; colspan=2 style=background:#efe; colspan=2 [20]

NE

Californian pilchardSardinops caeruleus (Girard, 1854)style=background:#efe; colspan=2 style=background:#efe; colspan=2 style=background:#efe; colspan=2 [21]

NE

southern African pilchardSardinops ocellatus (Pappe, 1854)style=background:#efe; colspan=2 style=background:#efe; colspan=2 style=background:#efe; colspan=2 [22]

NE

SardinellaBali sardinellaSardinella lemuru (Bleeker, 1853)23cm (09inches)20cm (10inches)[23]
[24]
Brazilian sardinellaSardinella brasiliensis (Steindachner, 1879)3.10[25]
[26]
Japanese sardinellaSardinella zunasi (Bleeker, 1854)3.12[27]
[28]
Indian oil sardineSardinella longiceps (Valenciennes, 1847)2.41[29]
[30]
Goldstripe sardinellaSardinella gibbosa (Bleeker, 1849)2.85[31]
[32]
Round sardinellaSardinella aurita (Valenciennes, 1847)3.40[33]
[34]
Madeiran sardinellaSardinella maderensis (Lowe, 1839)3.20[35]
[36]
Marquesan sardinellaSardinella marquesensis (Berry & Whitehead, 1968)16cm (06inches)10cm (00inches)2.90
DussumieriaRainbow sardineDussumieria acuta (Valenciennes, 1847)20cm (10inches)3.40[37]
[38]

Feeding

Sardines feed almost exclusively on zooplankton, (lit. "animal plankton"), and congregate wherever this is abundant.

Fisheries

Typically, sardines are caught with encircling nets, particularly purse seines. Many modifications of encircling nets are used, including traps or fishing weirs. The latter are stationary enclosures composed of stakes into which schools of sardines are diverted as they swim along the coast. The fish are caught mainly at night, when they approach the surface to feed on plankton. After harvesting, the fish are submerged in brine while they are transported to shore.

Sardines are commercially fished for a variety of uses: for bait; for immediate consumption; for drying, salting, or smoking; and for reduction into fish meal or oil. The chief use of sardines is for human consumption, but fish meal is used as animal feed, while sardine oil has many uses, including the manufacture of paint, varnish, and linoleum.

As food

See main article: Sardines as food.

Sardines are commonly consumed by humans. Fresh sardines are often grilled, pickled, smoked, or preserved in cans.

Sardines are rich in vitamins and minerals.[39] A small serving of sardines once a day can provide 13% of vitamin B2; roughly one-quarter of niacin; and about 150% of the recommended daily value of vitamin B12.[40] Sardines are high in the minerals such as phosphorus, calcium, and potassium, and some trace minerals including iron and selenium.[41]

Sardines are also a natural source of omega-3 fatty acids, which may reduce the occurrence of cardiovascular disease.[42] Regular consumption of omega-3 fatty acids may reduce the likelihood of developing Alzheimer's disease.[43] These fatty acids can also lower blood sugar levels.[44]

Because they are low in the food chain, sardines are very low in contaminants, such as mercury, relative to other fish commonly eaten by humans.[45]

History

History of sardine fishing in the UK

Pilchard fishing and processing became a thriving industry in Cornwall, England from around 1750 to around 1880, after which it went into decline. Catches varied from year to year, and in 1871, the catch was 47,000 hogsheads, while in 1877, only 9,477 hogsheads. A hogshead contained 2,300 to 4,000 pilchards, and when filled with pressed pilchards, weighed 476 lbs. The pilchards were mostly exported to Roman Catholic countries such as Italy and Spain, where they are known as fermades. The chief market for the oil was Bristol, where it was used on machinery.[46]

Since 1997, sardines from Cornwall have been sold as 'Cornish sardines', and since March 2010, under EU law, Cornish sardines have Protected Geographical Status.[47] The industry has featured in numerous works of art, particularly by Stanhope Forbes and other Newlyn School artists.

The traditional "Toast to Pilchards" refers to the lucrative export of the fish to Catholic Europe:

Here's health to the Pope, may he live to repent

And add just six months to the term of his Lent

And tell all his vassals from Rome to the Poles,

There's nothing like pilchards for saving their souls![48]

History of sardine fishing in the United States

In the United States, the sardine canning industry peaked in the 1950s. Since then, the industry has been on the decline. The canneries in Monterey Bay, in what was known as Cannery Row in Monterey County, California (where John Steinbeck's novel of the same name was set), failed in the mid-1950s. The last large sardine cannery in the United States, the Stinson Seafood plant in Prospect Harbor, Maine, closed its doors on 15 April 2010 after 135 years in operation.[49]

In April 2015 the Pacific Fishery Management Council voted to direct NOAA Fisheries Service to halt the current commercial season in Oregon, Washington and California, because of a dramatic collapse in Pacific sardine stocks. The ban affected about 100 fishing boats with sardine permits, although far fewer were actively fishing at the time. The season normally would end 30 June.[50] The ban was expected to last for more than a year, and was still in place .[51]

In popular culture

The manner in which sardines can be packed in a can has led to the popular English language saying "packed like sardines", which is used metaphorically to describe situations where people or objects are crowded closely together.[52]

'Sardines' is also the name of a children's game, where one person hides and each successive person who finds the hidden one packs into the same space until only one is left out, who becomes the next one to hide.[53]

Among the residents of the Mediterranean city of Marseille, the local tendency to exaggerate is linked to a folk tale about a sardine that supposedly blocked the city's port in the 18th century. It was actually blocked by a ship called the Sartine.

See also

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: What's an oily fish? . 24 June 2004 . Food Standards Agency . live . http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20101210005807/http://www.food.gov.uk/news/newsarchive/2004/jun/oilyfishdefinition . 10 December 2010 .
  2. Web site: Sardine Origin and meaning of sardine by Online Etymology Dictionary. etymonline.com . en . 10 August 2018 . 22 August 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110822044142/http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=sardine . dead.
  3. Web site: Sardine . The Good Food Glossary . BBC Worldwide . 2009 . 1 November 2009 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20081012193334/http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/content/knowhow/glossary/sardine . 12 October 2008 .
  4. Web site: Sarda, Sardina . Dizionario Etimologico Online.
  5. Web site: FAQs . Seafish . 22 February 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20110722073347/http://www.seafish.org/resources/details.asp?id=238&i=13 . 22 July 2011 .
  6. News: Stummer, Robin . Who are you calling pilchard? It's 'Cornish sardine' to you... . The Independent . 17 August 2003 . 1 November 2009 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20100912070106/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/who-are-you-calling-pilchard-its-cornish-sardine-to-you-536136.html . 12 September 2010 .
  7. Web site: Codex standard for canned sardines and sardine-type products codex stan 94 –1981 REV. 1–1995 . 18 January 2007 . Codex Alimentarius . FAO/WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission . 1–7 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20070325224831/http://www.codexalimentarius.net/download/standards/108/CXS_094e.pdf . 25 March 2007 .
  8. Web site: sardine . Wiktionary . 28 March 2018.
  9. Web site: σαρδίνη . The Online Liddell-Scott-Jones Greek-English Lexicon . 28 March 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110512001517/http://stephanus.tlg.uci.edu/lsj/#eid=95990 . live . 12 May 2011.
  10. Web site: sardine (n.) . Online Etymology Dictionary . 28 March 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190421175724/https://www.etymonline.com/word/sardine . 21 April 2019 . live.
  11. Web site: Sardius, Sardine . Vine's Expository Dictionary of NT Words (1940), hosted at StudyLight.org. . 28 March 2018.
  12. The Cottage Bonnet . The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction: Containing Original Papers . 155 . 1075 . 4 September 1841 .
  13. Book: de Kock, Paul . La femme, le mari, et l'amant . Charles Paul de Kock . 1829 . 1879 . 1 . fr . Sceaux, Paris . Imprimerie de Charaire et fils .
  14. Book: Lippard, George . The Quaker City, Or, The Monks of Monk-Hall: A Romance of Philadelphia Life, Mystery, and Crime . 1845 . 1849 . Philadelphia . T. B. Peterson & Brothers . 222 .
  15. Web site: Revelations of a slave trader; or Twenty years' adventures of Captain Canot . Mayer . Brantz . Brantz Mayer . Théodore . Canot. Théodore Canot . September 1854 . London . Richard Bentley . 61., although this is a free rendering from the French original "...il fallut...les entassér commes des sardines." (Book: Canot, Théodore . Le capitaine Canot, ou vingt années de la vie d'un négrier . 1854 . 1860 . fr . Paris . Amyot . 88 .) where 'entassér' can mean 'to cram together.
  16. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardina pilchardus . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120725235323/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2910/en . 25 July 2012 . live.
  17. Tous P, Sidibé A, Mbye E, de Morais L, Camara YH, Adeofe TA, Munroe T, Camara K, Cissoko K, Djiman R, Sagna A, Sylla M . European Pilchard – Sardina pilchardus . 2015 . e.T198580A15542481 . 2015 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T198580A15542481.en .
  18. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinops sagax . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120729052256/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2091/en . 29 July 2012.
  19. Gaughan D, Di Dario F, Hata H . Sardinops sagax . 2018 . e.T183347A15602965 . 2018 . 11 December 2018 .
  20. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinops melanostictus . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150924144828/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2893/en . 24 September 2015.
  21. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinops caeruleus . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121214052505/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2894/en . 14 December 2012.
  22. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinops ocellatus . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121213194340/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2895/en . 13 December 2012 . live.
  23. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella lemuru . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121213194410/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2892/en . 13 December 2012.
  24. Santos M . Bali sardinella – Sardinella lemuru . 2018 . e.T75154879A75154994 . 2018 . 11 December 2018.
  25. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella brasiliensis . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121107223208/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2090/en . 7 November 2012.
  26. Di Dario F . Brazilian Sardinella – Sardinella brasiliensis . 2018 . e.T16466246A16510172 . 2018 . 11 December 2018.
  27. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella zunasi . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121213182401/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2891/en . 13 December 2012 . live.
  28. Hata H, Munroe TA, Gaughan D, Mohd Arshaad W . Sardinella zunasi . 2017 . e.T75155119A75155131 . 2017 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T75155119A75155131.en.
  29. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella longiceps . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120508062047/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2086/en . 8 May 2012 . live.
  30. Munroe TA . Priede IG . Sardinella longiceps . 2010 . e.T154989A55159768 . 2010 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-1.RLTS.T154989A55159768.en . 18 October 2022.
  31. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella gibbosa . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121101234842/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2085/en . 1 November 2012 . live.
  32. Santos M, Villarao MC, Tambihasan AM, Villanueva JA, Parido L, Lopez G, Deligero R, Alcantara M, Doyola MC, Gatlabayan LV, ((Buccat FGA)), Lanzuela N, Belga PB, Gapuz AV, Al-Khalaf K, Kaymaram F . Goldstripe Sardinella – Sardinella gibbosa . 2018 . e.T46075248A46664239 . 2018 . 11 December 2018 .
  33. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella aurita . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121107221908/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2088/en . 7 November 2012 . live.
  34. Munroe T, Brown J, Aiken KA, Grijalba Bendeck L . Round Sardinella – Sardinella aurita . e.T198581A115340607 . 2015 . 2017 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T198581A15542908.en .
  35. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Sardinella maderensis . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121214052117/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2089/en . 14 December 2012 . live.
  36. Tous P, Sidibé A, Mbye E, de Morais L, Camara K, Munroe T, Adeofe TA, Camara YH, Djiman R, Sagna A, Sylla M . Madeiran Sardinella – Sardinella madeirensis . 2015 . e.T198582A15543624 . 2015 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2015-4.RLTS.T198582A15543624.en .
  37. Web site: Species Fact Sheet: Dussumieria acuta . . en . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20121213202105/http://www.fao.org/fishery/species/2900/en . 13 December 2012 . live.
  38. Santos M, Hata H, Villanueva JA, Parido L, Lanzuela N, Gapuz AV, Deligero R, Belga PB, Alcantara M, ((Buccat FGA)), Doyola MC, Gatlabayan LV, Lopez G, Tambihasan AM . Hasselt's Sprat – Dussumieria acuta . 2017 . e.T18124721A46663954 . 2017 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-3.RLTS.T18124721A46663954.en.
  39. Web site: Fish, sardine, Pacific, canned in tomato sauce, drained solids with bone . USDA FoodData Central . 16 January 2021 .
  40. Web site: Are Sardines a Good Source of Calcium? . LiveStrong . 22 February 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180811064232/https://www.livestrong.com/article/465925-are-sardines-a-good-source-of-calcium/ . 11 August 2018 . live.
  41. Web site: 2024-01-08 . This Ingredient Has More Vitamin D Than Milk, Is Anti-Inflammatory, and Prevents Hair Loss . 2024-01-08 . Vogue . en-US.
  42. 10.1161/01.CIR.0000038493.65177.94 . Kris-Etherton . Harris . WS . Appel . LJ . American Heart Association. Nutrition Committee . Fish Consumption, Fish Oil, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, and Cardiovascular Disease . Circulation . 106 . 21 . 2747–2757 . November 2002 . 12438303. etal . free.
  43. Brain foods: the effects of nutrients on brain function . Fernando . Gómez-Pinilla . 1 July 2008 . Nature Reviews Neuroscience . 9 . 7 . 568–578 . 10.1038/nrn2421 . 18568016 . 2805706.
  44. Web site: Omega-3 fatty acids, fish oil, alpha-linolenic acid: MedlinePlus Supplements . Fish oil supplements may lower blood sugar levels a small amount. Caution is advised when using herbs or supplements that may also lower blood sugar. Blood glucose levels may require monitoring, and doses may need adjustment. . 22 January 2010 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20060208023339/http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-fishoil.html . 8 February 2006.
  45. News: Mercury Levels in Commercial Fish and Shellfish . U S Food and Drug Administration . 5 July 2009 . 1 November 2009 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20111024125535/https://www.fda.gov/food/foodsafety/product-specificinformation/seafood/foodbornepathogenscontaminants/methylmercury/ucm115644.htm . 24 October 2011 .
  46. News: Buckland . Frank . Our Fisheries . The Cornishman . 85 . 26 February 1880 . 6.
  47. Web site: Directory of PGI/PDO/TSG – Cornish Sardines profile . EC, Agriculture and Rural Development . 1 November 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180810205713/http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/quality/door/registeredName.html?denominationId=2122 . 10 August 2018 . live.
  48. Book: Rawe, Donald R . 1992 . Traditional Cornish Stories and Rhymes . Lodenek Press . 0-902899-08-2.
  49. News: Canfield, Clarke . Last sardine plant in U.S. shuts its doors . https://web.archive.org/web/20200923231144/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/36503650 . dead . 23 September 2020 . Associated Press . 15 April 2010 . 15 April 2010.
  50. Web site: Feds Cancel Commercial Sardine Fishing After Stocks Crash . 16 April 2015 . North Country Public Radio, St. Lawrence University, Canton, New York . 28 March 2018.
  51. Web site: Pacific Sardine . NOAA Fisheries . 1 May 2019.
  52. Web site: packed like sardines Definition of packed like sardines in English by Oxford Dictionaries . Oxford Dictionaries English . 10 August 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171011021901/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/packed_like_sardines . 11 October 2017 . dead.
  53. Web site: Stinky Sardine Club – ITPedia . Itpedia.nyu.edu . 9 April 2010 . 21 June 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20141129120921/http://itpedia.nyu.edu/wiki/Stinky_Sardine_Club . 29 November 2014 .

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