Fish have always made up a large proportion of the food we
consume because of their abundance and relative ease of harvesting. Fish are
valuable, not only because they are a good source of protein, but because they
are suitable for all types of menus, and can be cooked and presented in a wide
variety of ways. The range of different types of fish of varying texture, taste
and appearance is indispensable to the creative chef.
Fish is as useful a source of animal protein as meat. The
oily fish, such as sardines, mackerel, herrings and salmon, contain vitamins A
and D in their flesh; in white fish, such as halibut and cod, these vitamins
are present in the liver. Since all fish contains protein it is a good
body-building food, and oil fish is useful for energy and as a protective food
because of the vitamins it contains.
The amount of fat in different fish varies: oily fish
contain 5 - 18 per cent, white fish less than 2 per cent.
When the bones are eaten, calcium is obtained from fish
(tinned sardines or salmon).
Oily fish is not easily digested as white fish because of
the fat content; shellfish is not easily digested because of the coarseness of
the fibers.
Fish is important for body-building, and certain types of
fish (oily fish) supply more energy and are protective because of the fat and
vitamins A and D contained in the fish.
The bones of sardines, whitebait and tinned salmon, which
can be eaten, provide calcium and phosphorus.
Owing to its fat content, oily fish is not as digestive as
white fish and is not suitable for use in cookery for invalids.
Despite all these great importance of fish, fish supply is
not unlimited, due to overfishing, fish farms (e.g. for trout, salmon, cod,
halibut and turbot) have been established to supplement the natural sources.
Overfishing is not the only problem: due to contamination by man, the seas and
rivers are increasingly polluted, thus affecting both the supply and
suitability of fish, particularly shellfish, for human consumption.
