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Eating mussels is a popular tradition in Brussels, but many people may be surprised to learn that none of the mollusks enjoyed by tourists are native to Belgium.
Until now, a Belgian supermarket group has taken up the challenge of collecting local mussels and is reaping the rewards with a booming business.
A crane lifts ropes wrapped with mussels onto a ship in Newport Coast, near the French border.
They are part of a 12-kilometer (seven-mile) network that the Colruyt chain is building by 2023.
Such a scene has never been seen before in Belgium and Colruyt hopes that it will continue to expand, especially to challenge the dominance of Dutch mussels in the local market.
“It takes four of us about four hours to harvest one tonne. We hope to be able to harvest three to four tonnes a day in the future,” said Stijn Van Hoestenberghe as he gave an AFP team a tour of the mussel farm he manages.
Colruyt is on track to produce 50 tonnes this year, up from 6 tonnes last year, and “perhaps 200 tonnes” by 2025, Van Hoestenberghe added.
Van Holstenberg admitted that it was not an easy task because of the strong currents, violent storms and heavy maritime traffic in the area.
This is a far cry from the broad and deep Scheldt estuary in southern Holland, where the famous Zeeland mussels grow, supplying much of Europe.
“The Dutch part of the delta is a huge protected area and it is easier to set up (mussel) farms here than in the open sea,” explained Jerome Mallefet, a marine biologist at the University of Leuven in Belgium.
The expert added that establishing more mussel farms along the Belgian coast, which Maleffitt described as a “ship highway,” is more difficult because of offshore wind turbines and trawling activities.
Today, experts estimate that Belgium is one of Europe’s largest mussel consumers, alongside Spain, France and Denmark, and that more than 90% of its mussels come from Dutch farmers in Zeeland.
– Introducing foreign mussels –
Despite the progress, Colruyt has bigger ambitions to crack the market, as its supply would only cover, at best, 1% of demand in Belgium, where mussel consumption is around 20,000 tonnes per year.
“There is clearly room for growth,” the company said.
Colruyt’s “100% Belgian” mussels are currently supplied to four stores and around 15 restaurants in Belgium.
One of its arguments for developing the market is that the mussels are farmed “sustainably” because the ropes used are made from recycled fishing nets.
Mussels are a seasonal food. Experts say they are best eaten when they are at their peak size and texture, usually from September to December.
In Brussels’ historic Grand Place, Belgium’s main tourist destination, a restaurant owner told AFP he offers the popular traditional dish of mussels and French fries on his menu all year round.
Like his customers, his mussels come from all over Europe.
“We have a lot of people who eat mussels here… so we have Zeeland mussels between June and February, and after that we have Danish mussels, or even German mussels, depending on the demand,” said Jean-Philippe Bosman, owner of Le Roy d’Espagne restaurant.
“It’s good to have local producers, but they need to supply the quantities we want on time… that’s more complicated.”
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