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They're a childhood favourite.
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00:00:04,000 --> 00:00:05,760
Over the next week,
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00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:12,240
we'll munch our way through
600,000 kg of fish fingers.
4
00:00:12,240 --> 00:00:16,680
That's the equivalent of more than
1 billion of them a year.
5
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Tonight, we're going to follow the
journey of fish finger production.
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From the depths of the Atlantic
Ocean...
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00:00:23,240 --> 00:00:25,840
..To the meal on your plate.
8
00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:29,680
It's a process that relies on dozens
of skilled hands.
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And they're all working away in
here.
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I'm Gregg Wallace.
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That is somebody's tea.
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And I'll be finding out how the
fingers are formed.
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Oh, it's really hot on the outside
and it's frozen in the middle.
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I'm Cherry Healey,
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and I'll be getting stuck in at the
start of the production line.
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This is a real biology lesson.
17
00:00:55,480 --> 00:00:59,520
And I'll be discovering the secrets
of smoked fish.
18
00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:05,120
And historian Ruth Goodman reveals
the origin of this traditional
tea-time food.
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00:01:05,120 --> 00:01:07,160
This isn't quite what I was
expecting.
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In the next 24 hours,
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80,000 frozen fish fingers will fly
out of this factory.
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00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:18,160
Heading to a freezer near you.
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00:01:18,160 --> 00:01:20,800
Welcome to Inside The Factory.
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00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:46,120
This is the Caistor seafood factory
near Grimsby in Lincolnshire.
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It employs 200 skilled workers
across a 26,000 square metre site.
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00:01:53,560 --> 00:01:58,960
They work around the clock to
process 165 tonnes of fish
every week...
27
00:02:00,240 --> 00:02:03,640
..from whole fish, to smoked fillets
and fishcakes.
28
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Tonight, we're focusing on
Waitrose's frozen chunky fish
fingers.
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Whether you like your fingers
breaded or battered,
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it's all about starting with the
right fish.
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And here, that's cod.
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00:02:20,600 --> 00:02:22,880
Cherry's been to see where it comes
from.
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00:02:25,080 --> 00:02:29,360
I'm in Grindavik, one of the largest
fishing harbours in Iceland.
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00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:35,520
Boats dock here every day, bringing
in more than 100 tonnes of fish.
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And almost half of that is cod.
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I'm waiting for a fishing boat that
has been at sea for about 20 hours,
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it's freezing cold, even here in the
port,
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so goodness knows how they've been.
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00:02:48,440 --> 00:02:51,080
Oh, I think I can see the boat
coming in now.
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00:02:55,320 --> 00:02:58,320
This boat goes to sea six days
a week,
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00:02:58,320 --> 00:03:02,000
and the crew catch about eight
tonnes of cod each time.
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The captain has been fishing here
for 28 years.
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This is cod. Wow, wow.
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I had no idea it was so huge.
45
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Yeah. It's beautiful.
46
00:03:20,320 --> 00:03:24,400
Yeah, it is. So, how long ago did
you catch this, do you think?
47
00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:27,040
This one was about two hours ago.
48
00:03:27,040 --> 00:03:28,560
Two hours?
49
00:03:28,560 --> 00:03:32,040
That's the freshest caught fish I've
ever seen. Yeah.
50
00:03:33,360 --> 00:03:38,200
The cod are caught using a
responsible technique called long
line fishing.
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00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:43,640
14 miles of fishing line with 20,000
baited hooks
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is placed on the sea bed.
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This method is sustainable and has
a low impact on the ocean floor.
54
00:03:54,080 --> 00:03:56,600
Will these cod make good fish
fingers?
55
00:03:56,600 --> 00:04:00,400
Yeah, this is the best size for fish
fingers.
56
00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:03,480
The fish are between four and six
years old.
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Any older and they're too big to
handle.
58
00:04:06,320 --> 00:04:08,600
So you're helping with your catch.
59
00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:10,360
Yeah... You've got a lot of work on
your hands.
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Yeah. I'll step aside and let you
get on with it.
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00:04:11,920 --> 00:04:16,160
Thank you. Thank you very much.
OK.
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00:04:17,160 --> 00:04:21,760
His haul is loaded onto a truck and
driven less than a mile to a fish
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00:04:21,760 --> 00:04:23,440
factory for processing.
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00:04:24,520 --> 00:04:28,160
Factory manager Alda is showing me
how the whole fish begin their
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00:04:28,160 --> 00:04:30,280
transformation into fish fingers.
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00:04:30,280 --> 00:04:32,680
Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.
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00:04:32,680 --> 00:04:35,760
So, here's the cod.
Yeah. What happens now?
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00:04:35,760 --> 00:04:41,240
Now, we will gut it and grade it and
get it ready for production.
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00:04:47,320 --> 00:04:49,720
First stop, fish gutting.
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00:04:49,720 --> 00:04:52,040
I'm feeling a bit nervous.
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00:04:52,040 --> 00:04:55,640
But expert filleter Eli makes it
looks easy.
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Hi. Hi.
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00:04:58,160 --> 00:05:00,640
Hi, Eli. Hi, hi. Wow.
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I'm just going to say, that I'm a
real city girl,
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00:05:03,920 --> 00:05:06,120
and this is the first time I've ever
seen this.
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OK. This is a real biology lesson.
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00:05:08,440 --> 00:05:10,960
Wowee.
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00:05:10,960 --> 00:05:12,840
You want to try? Yeah, definitely.
79
00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:17,840
I don't think I've ever touched
a raw fish like this in my life.
80
00:05:17,840 --> 00:05:22,720
Professional filleters like Eli gut
up to ten cod a minute.
81
00:05:22,720 --> 00:05:24,280
You don't want any of the insides?
82
00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:28,480
I'm struggling with just one.
83
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I am learning.
84
00:05:38,880 --> 00:05:40,680
Right, now what happens with the
fish?
85
00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:43,040
I put that down there.
Next to the production area.
86
00:05:43,040 --> 00:05:44,080
OK. I'll show you.
87
00:05:48,320 --> 00:05:51,240
Next, the gutted fish are sorted by
size.
88
00:05:52,960 --> 00:05:55,120
And their heads cut off.
89
00:05:55,120 --> 00:05:57,760
There are so many fish heads coming
out of that machine.
90
00:05:57,760 --> 00:06:01,160
How many fish go through this
factory in one day?
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00:06:01,160 --> 00:06:02,680
5,000 and more.
92
00:06:02,680 --> 00:06:03,720
And more? Yeah.
93
00:06:04,920 --> 00:06:08,320
The headless fish are filleted by
a machine.
94
00:06:08,320 --> 00:06:09,360
And the skin is removed.
95
00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:13,480
Just 12 hours since they were pulled
from the sea,
96
00:06:13,480 --> 00:06:16,680
the fillets arrive at one of 12
trimming stations.
97
00:06:16,680 --> 00:06:18,600
This is the trimming area.
98
00:06:18,600 --> 00:06:20,840
So, we have our lovely fillet of
fish.
99
00:06:20,840 --> 00:06:24,840
So, which is the bit that goes into
fish fingers?
100
00:06:24,840 --> 00:06:28,080
I'll show you. Like this fillet
here, we take out the bones first.
101
00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:31,000
OK, take out the bones. We take the
line, we separate the line.
102
00:06:31,000 --> 00:06:34,520
And the rest goes to the fish
fingers.
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00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:38,600
So, the fish that goes into a fish
finger is almost exactly the same as
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00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:41,840
the fish you get in a prime cut of
cod?
105
00:06:41,840 --> 00:06:44,080
It is exactly the same. It's just a
different shape.
106
00:06:44,080 --> 00:06:46,760
It's not ALMOST exactly,
it IS exactly the same.
107
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Exactly the same.
108
00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:53,160
We only need the prime cuts, but
nothing goes to waste.
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00:06:53,160 --> 00:06:55,520
The livers have their oil extracted,
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00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:58,160
the skeleton and head are dried for
soup,
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00:06:58,160 --> 00:07:00,640
and the skin is turned into animal
feed.
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00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:06,560
The fillets for the fish fingers are
packed tightly into
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00:07:06,560 --> 00:07:08,520
rectangular cardboard boxes.
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We lay them like this.
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00:07:09,640 --> 00:07:12,840
OK. And we have to fill this box and
freeze it.
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00:07:13,880 --> 00:07:16,920
Why is this done by hand?
Why does the machine not do this?
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00:07:16,920 --> 00:07:19,800
Because the pieces are not all the
same size.
118
00:07:19,800 --> 00:07:21,120
So, you have to do it by hand.
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00:07:23,520 --> 00:07:27,040
The boxes, each weighing just over
seven kilos,
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00:07:27,040 --> 00:07:31,920
are put into a freezer at -30
degrees for four hours,
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00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:34,040
until the cod is frozen solid.
122
00:07:34,040 --> 00:07:40,440
It's absolutely amazing, that in
just a few hours, I've seen cod
cleaned,
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00:07:40,440 --> 00:07:42,920
cut and frozen into cod blocks ready
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00:07:42,920 --> 00:07:46,120
for its next stage at the fish
finger factory.
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00:07:47,240 --> 00:07:51,600
To get to the factory, the cod heads
from Grindavik to Reykjavik harbour.
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00:07:52,800 --> 00:07:56,600
And onto a ship where the containers
of fish are kept frozen for the
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00:07:56,600 --> 00:07:58,520
entire 1,200 mile journey
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00:07:58,520 --> 00:08:00,800
to Immingham in Lincolnshire.
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As each container is unloaded,
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00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:12,440
it is instantly plugged back into a
power supply to keep its cargo
frozen.
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Its final destination is nine
miles away,
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00:08:19,520 --> 00:08:22,280
at the NH Case fish cutting factory.
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00:08:23,440 --> 00:08:29,200
In charge of receiving this
morning's batch of cod is site
manager Nick Wilson.
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Nick, Gregg.
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00:08:31,280 --> 00:08:36,040
Nice to meet you, Gregg. I'm taking
it for granted that this is our cod?
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00:08:36,040 --> 00:08:37,840
This is our frozen cod, yes.
137
00:08:37,840 --> 00:08:41,440
How many fish fingers will this cod
actually make?
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00:08:41,440 --> 00:08:43,240
There's ten pallets in here,
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each pallet will give us about
27,000 fish fingers,
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00:08:46,560 --> 00:08:49,040
so just over a quarter of a million
fish fingers
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00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:50,760
will come out of this lorry now.
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So, this has got to stay frozen and
we've had the doors open for
a while.
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00:08:54,000 --> 00:08:57,120
That's right, we need to get a move
on and get it into the cold store.
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00:08:58,840 --> 00:09:03,720
The transformation from fillets of
cod to breaded fish fingers starts
now.
145
00:09:07,040 --> 00:09:09,840
The pallets are forklifted
out of the freezer truck
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00:09:09,840 --> 00:09:11,080
and into the factory.
147
00:09:17,680 --> 00:09:22,360
Right, so we've got our pallet of
blocks of fish, now what?
148
00:09:22,360 --> 00:09:24,000
We have to take them out of the
cardboard.
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00:09:24,000 --> 00:09:27,560
Oh. And we have nice fish blocks.
150
00:09:27,560 --> 00:09:31,360
I don't know what I expected,
but I didn't expect that.
151
00:09:31,360 --> 00:09:33,280
That looks like a lump of marble.
152
00:09:33,280 --> 00:09:36,960
You never been tempted to take these
home and do your kitchen worktops in
them?
153
00:09:36,960 --> 00:09:39,600
No, not really. Sort of tends
to defrost a bit on the way!
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00:09:39,600 --> 00:09:41,600
THEY LAUGH
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00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:44,720
First, we need to get the cardboard
off.
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00:09:44,720 --> 00:09:47,160
Why don't you just bring it in
without the cardboard on it?
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00:09:47,160 --> 00:09:49,200
Because if you bring it in without
the cardboard,
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it starts to get freezer burn on it.
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00:09:52,280 --> 00:09:55,040
So this all starts to dry out.
160
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You want to go from the sides first.
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Then fold that over.
162
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So then when you have that,
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you just flip it over
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00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:07,600
and then you can peel it back.
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00:10:07,600 --> 00:10:09,960
This must take ages.
166
00:10:09,960 --> 00:10:12,280
We need three people to feed them
machines.
167
00:10:12,280 --> 00:10:14,240
Three people work on a pallet? Yes.
168
00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:18,960
Do I look really ridiculously
slow to you?
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00:10:18,960 --> 00:10:20,640
Yes.
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00:10:20,640 --> 00:10:22,920
Hooray! And that's it, done.
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00:10:24,080 --> 00:10:25,880
Chip off the old block.
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00:10:25,880 --> 00:10:29,880
Now there's a quick check to make
sure the block
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is at least -14 degrees.
174
00:10:32,000 --> 00:10:36,880
The factory isn't refrigerated,
so the team have to work fast.
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00:10:36,880 --> 00:10:39,120
If the temperature of the fish
increases,
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the machines won't be able to cut
it.
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00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:45,800
Is it OK? Yes, it's OK,
temperature's good to go.
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00:10:45,800 --> 00:10:50,600
My palette of 160 frozen cod blocks
is ready for the next step.
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00:10:50,600 --> 00:10:56,640
Those are standard blocks worldwide,
same size, 7.484 kilos.
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00:10:56,640 --> 00:11:01,280
Hang on a minute. That is the
standard weight around the world?
181
00:11:01,280 --> 00:11:02,720
Yes. Around the globe?
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00:11:02,720 --> 00:11:05,640
Around the globe. Don't matter where
you buy a block of frozen fish from,
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00:11:05,640 --> 00:11:07,480
it's always going to be that?
Always that.
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00:11:07,480 --> 00:11:08,880
All fish? All fish.
185
00:11:09,920 --> 00:11:11,200
Is that it? Yeah, seriously.
186
00:11:11,200 --> 00:11:14,920
That is the standard currency of
global frozen fish trade?
187
00:11:14,920 --> 00:11:17,360
Yeah. Brilliant, that's brilliant!
188
00:11:18,880 --> 00:11:25,600
Each 7.484 kilogram block is
basically one big fish finger.
189
00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:28,920
Now it's time to cut it down to
size.
190
00:11:28,920 --> 00:11:31,000
How many fish fingers does one of
those blocks make?
191
00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:33,720
168 fish fingers from one block.
192
00:11:33,720 --> 00:11:35,680
168? 168.
193
00:11:37,520 --> 00:11:42,640
To do that, the block is first
sliced into four pieces, called
bricks.
194
00:11:42,640 --> 00:11:43,960
It's making four cuts.
195
00:11:45,200 --> 00:11:47,200
One...two...
196
00:11:48,880 --> 00:11:52,240
Are you going to count up to four?
Three... You are, aren't you?
197
00:11:52,240 --> 00:11:56,000
Four. Then each brick is cut down
again.
198
00:11:57,840 --> 00:12:01,360
Right, well, we had blocks.
Yeah. You then made bricks.
199
00:12:01,360 --> 00:12:03,160
Yeah. What are these?
200
00:12:03,160 --> 00:12:04,840
These are planks. Planks?
201
00:12:04,840 --> 00:12:06,920
Planks. Right, so how many of them
are there?
202
00:12:06,920 --> 00:12:08,680
One, two, three, four, five, six.
203
00:12:08,680 --> 00:12:10,280
Six... Planks in a brick.
204
00:12:10,280 --> 00:12:12,160
How many bricks in a block?
205
00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:14,760
How many bricks in a block,
will be four bricks in a block.
206
00:12:14,760 --> 00:12:16,400
How many planks in a brick?
207
00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:18,520
Five. Six. Six!
208
00:12:18,520 --> 00:12:20,520
THEY LAUGH
209
00:12:20,520 --> 00:12:24,000
My frozen block is now in 24 pieces.
210
00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:29,240
The next cut requires considerable
precision and concentration.
211
00:12:29,240 --> 00:12:34,360
It's Daniel McCann's job to slice
the planks into individual fish
fingers,
212
00:12:34,360 --> 00:12:40,800
each weighing exactly 42g,
using a super-sharp saw.
213
00:12:40,800 --> 00:12:44,800
I didn't want to talk to you while
you were cutting up the fish.
214
00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:47,120
Yeah, it's not a good idea, Gregg.
215
00:12:47,120 --> 00:12:49,800
You've got to focus, right?
Yeah, very much so.
216
00:12:50,760 --> 00:12:56,280
It takes Daniel just one minute to
produce 168 fingers of fish.
217
00:12:56,280 --> 00:12:58,680
We get seven fingers from each
plank.
218
00:12:58,680 --> 00:13:00,720
And a tiny little strip...
219
00:13:00,720 --> 00:13:02,440
A tiny little off-cut.
220
00:13:02,440 --> 00:13:04,760
And that's the trickiest bit to cut,
isn't it?
221
00:13:04,760 --> 00:13:08,360
That is the hardest part, that is
where you've got to stay most
focused.
222
00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:16,680
Just two hours after my pallet of
frozen cod block arrived at the
factory,
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00:13:16,680 --> 00:13:20,560
I've got 27,000 naked fish fingers,
224
00:13:20,560 --> 00:13:22,720
all ready for the next step in the
process.
225
00:13:24,120 --> 00:13:29,160
For millions of us, childhood
tea-time without the fish finger
is unimaginable.
226
00:13:29,160 --> 00:13:33,840
Ruth Goodman has been tracing the
history of this family favourite.
227
00:13:33,840 --> 00:13:36,160
ARCHIVE: They're catchier.
They're bunchier.
228
00:13:36,160 --> 00:13:37,880
They're different.
They're new.
229
00:13:37,880 --> 00:13:40,400
# Yes, Birds Eye Fish Fingers
are much better too! #
230
00:13:43,360 --> 00:13:46,920
The cod fish finger - the food of
British childhood,
231
00:13:46,920 --> 00:13:50,040
easy to cook and easy to eat.
232
00:13:50,040 --> 00:13:52,080
They feel like they've been around
forever,
233
00:13:52,080 --> 00:13:54,680
but when did they first land
on our shelves?
234
00:13:56,080 --> 00:13:59,640
To find out, I've been invited to
the Metropole Hotel in Brighton.
235
00:14:00,760 --> 00:14:03,120
Hi, Ruth. Hello, Peter. Welcome to
the Metropole.
236
00:14:03,120 --> 00:14:06,800
To meet Peter Lack, who is head chef
for Birds Eye.
237
00:14:06,800 --> 00:14:11,880
He's brought me here to explain how
the company first introduced the
fish finger.
238
00:14:13,280 --> 00:14:15,240
Goodness!
239
00:14:15,240 --> 00:14:17,080
This is a pretty grand space.
240
00:14:17,080 --> 00:14:19,520
And what's this got to do with
fish fingers?
241
00:14:19,520 --> 00:14:21,680
This is where the fish finger
was born.
242
00:14:21,680 --> 00:14:23,200
Really? Right here, in this room.
243
00:14:23,200 --> 00:14:28,120
Yes, in 1955 we got 30 of our sales
reps in here and we presented them
244
00:14:28,120 --> 00:14:29,960
with the fish finger.
It's funny, isn't it?
245
00:14:29,960 --> 00:14:32,160
I think of fish fingers
as a very simple food.
246
00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:33,720
This just seems so incongruous.
247
00:14:35,080 --> 00:14:38,480
Peter's brought along one of the
original adverts used to promote
them.
248
00:14:39,640 --> 00:14:45,320
"Sea fresh fish, ready cooked and
easy to serve fingers.
249
00:14:45,320 --> 00:14:49,160
"Your family will love them,
the children especially."
250
00:14:49,160 --> 00:14:53,520
It was the first fish product we
developed that was designed
specifically for children.
251
00:14:53,520 --> 00:14:55,280
No bones, nice and clean,
252
00:14:55,280 --> 00:14:58,920
easy for Mum to cook, and lovely
fresh fish inside.
253
00:14:58,920 --> 00:15:01,440
ARCHIVE: When they know it's
Birds Eye Fish Fingers for dinner,
254
00:15:01,440 --> 00:15:03,360
they certainly need no coaxing.
255
00:15:03,360 --> 00:15:05,280
So this was 1955.
256
00:15:05,280 --> 00:15:08,640
Did many people actually have
freezers in 1955?
257
00:15:08,640 --> 00:15:11,040
Only about 3% of people
had freezers.
258
00:15:11,040 --> 00:15:13,560
You actually had to go and buy them
on the day you were going to eat
them.
259
00:15:13,560 --> 00:15:15,720
And you ate them straightaway.
260
00:15:15,720 --> 00:15:17,920
They were an instant hit.
261
00:15:17,920 --> 00:15:21,440
542 tonnes were sold in the first
year.
262
00:15:22,680 --> 00:15:27,320
And in the second year,
sales rocketed by 600%.
263
00:15:27,320 --> 00:15:30,080
But it could have been a very
different story.
264
00:15:31,080 --> 00:15:35,480
The idea of a breaded finger of
white fish came from North America,
265
00:15:35,480 --> 00:15:37,920
where they were called Fish-Sticks.
266
00:15:37,920 --> 00:15:40,240
They wanted to introduce
a British version,
267
00:15:40,240 --> 00:15:42,160
but planned to make them from a fish
268
00:15:42,160 --> 00:15:45,000
that might not have been everyone's
first choice.
269
00:15:46,560 --> 00:15:48,480
This isn't quite what I was
expecting.
270
00:15:49,560 --> 00:15:51,720
No, these are herrings, they're
lovely, aren't they?
271
00:15:51,720 --> 00:15:54,400
Herrings? Yes, it's a lovely fish,
herring,
272
00:15:54,400 --> 00:15:57,000
but it's not what I think of when I
think fish fingers.
273
00:15:57,000 --> 00:16:00,320
Well, when we first started out,
everything was herring.
274
00:16:00,320 --> 00:16:02,840
So this was the fish that was most
available in Britain?
275
00:16:02,840 --> 00:16:04,960
Yes, exactly. And that's what
British people like,
276
00:16:04,960 --> 00:16:07,400
that's what you're going to make
your fish fingers out of.
277
00:16:07,400 --> 00:16:09,320
Except that they're very small fish,
278
00:16:09,320 --> 00:16:11,440
and getting them bone-free is quite
a lot of work.
279
00:16:11,440 --> 00:16:13,240
And there's still a few there.
And there's still a few.
280
00:16:17,040 --> 00:16:20,040
Despite the difficulties,
the company persevered,
281
00:16:20,040 --> 00:16:22,080
and in 1954 they tested out these
282
00:16:22,080 --> 00:16:25,560
breaded sticks of herring on the
great British public.
283
00:16:28,760 --> 00:16:33,360
And over 60 years later, I'm getting
to try them too.
284
00:16:33,360 --> 00:16:35,120
I'm looking forward to trying these.
285
00:16:42,080 --> 00:16:44,840
It's a much stronger taste than a
modern fish finger, isn't it?
286
00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:48,160
Yes. I can see it if you were
a child,
287
00:16:48,160 --> 00:16:51,360
the stronger flavour and the
presence of bones
288
00:16:51,360 --> 00:16:53,280
might be a bit off-putting.
289
00:16:53,280 --> 00:16:55,680
Taste and bones weren't the only
problem.
290
00:16:55,680 --> 00:16:57,280
Can you imagine what we were going
to call them?
291
00:16:57,280 --> 00:16:58,440
Well, Fish Fingers I presume?
292
00:16:58,440 --> 00:17:01,440
Oh, no. Herring Savouries is what
we came up with.
293
00:17:03,360 --> 00:17:05,160
Hmm.
294
00:17:05,160 --> 00:17:09,680
Perhaps not surprisingly, Herring
Savouries never made it to our
shelves,
295
00:17:09,680 --> 00:17:15,320
because they also trialled an
alternative in those 1954 taste
tests.
296
00:17:15,320 --> 00:17:19,280
A breaded cod stick, which was
a surprise hit.
297
00:17:19,280 --> 00:17:22,440
One year later, the product as we
know it was born.
298
00:17:24,440 --> 00:17:27,400
Fish fingers changed the tastes of
the nation
299
00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:30,880
and they allowed children to
enjoy the health benefits of fish
300
00:17:30,880 --> 00:17:34,440
without any squeamishness of dealing
with skin or bones.
301
00:17:35,640 --> 00:17:38,200
But imagine if they'd never tried
out the cod,
302
00:17:38,200 --> 00:17:41,240
we could now be eating
Herring Savouries for our tea.
303
00:17:47,720 --> 00:17:50,440
GREGG: Two hours after arriving at
the cutting factory,
304
00:17:50,440 --> 00:17:54,360
my frozen fish fingers have been cut
down to size.
305
00:17:54,360 --> 00:17:58,600
From here, they head to the main
factory 14 miles away
306
00:17:58,600 --> 00:18:02,680
and the start of
the 32 metre long production line.
307
00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:09,600
Here, they'll be coated, fried,
flash frozen and packed.
308
00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:13,400
Right, brilliant.
309
00:18:13,400 --> 00:18:17,760
A load of frozen fish, leave this
with me - it's in safe hands.
310
00:18:17,760 --> 00:18:24,120
Waiting for me at the start of the
line is assistant manufacturing
manager Mel Nichols.
311
00:18:24,120 --> 00:18:25,920
Right, do we have to get these out
of here by hand?
312
00:18:25,920 --> 00:18:28,040
We do unfortunately, I'm afraid.
313
00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:30,680
Literally just pick them out,
put them onto here...
314
00:18:32,520 --> 00:18:35,440
..and then empty them onto this
trough.
315
00:18:35,440 --> 00:18:38,160
Why can't you just tip them straight
on to the conveyor belt?
316
00:18:38,160 --> 00:18:39,800
Because they sometimes come out like
that,
317
00:18:39,800 --> 00:18:42,880
so when they've been in the freezer
they'll just stick together.
318
00:18:42,880 --> 00:18:45,920
So we tip my naked fish fingers...
319
00:18:45,920 --> 00:18:47,680
Yep. Cos they've got no coating
on them yet.
320
00:18:47,680 --> 00:18:51,440
Yep, yep. They're naked, to me. So
we tip those onto here and then they
321
00:18:51,440 --> 00:18:55,880
manually have to be checked to make
sure they're not sticking together?
Yeah.
322
00:18:55,880 --> 00:18:59,640
My fish fingers are whisked away
into the first machine.
323
00:19:01,000 --> 00:19:02,120
Wahey!
324
00:19:03,160 --> 00:19:05,360
Right, that looks like a steamer
to me.
325
00:19:05,360 --> 00:19:07,720
It's like a great big kettle really,
in there.
326
00:19:07,720 --> 00:19:12,400
So it's just producing steam and
it's just taking the top layer of
ice off.
327
00:19:12,400 --> 00:19:14,800
So as you can see, that's just
passed through
328
00:19:14,800 --> 00:19:16,240
and it's all nice and wet.
329
00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:17,680
It's not just the top layer, is it?
330
00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:22,520
It's all over it, it's the top,
the bottom and the sides.
331
00:19:22,520 --> 00:19:26,960
The outer layer of ice is melted to
make the finger wet and sticky,
332
00:19:26,960 --> 00:19:29,240
ready for its first coating.
333
00:19:29,240 --> 00:19:30,960
And what do you call this bit?
334
00:19:30,960 --> 00:19:34,040
That is a pre-dust. A pre-dust?
335
00:19:34,040 --> 00:19:37,200
Yeah. Not dust as in your dust
off your telly.
336
00:19:38,640 --> 00:19:40,040
That pre-dust is flour?
337
00:19:40,040 --> 00:19:43,280
Yes. And I'm guessing you put flour
round it to make the batter stick?
338
00:19:43,280 --> 00:19:44,440
Yes.
339
00:19:44,440 --> 00:19:47,880
My naked fish fingers are just about
to get covered over in a blanket of
340
00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:50,640
flour, or dust, as you call it.
341
00:19:50,640 --> 00:19:52,920
They are, so they'll not be naked
any more.
342
00:19:52,920 --> 00:19:54,920
It's a shame, really.
343
00:19:54,920 --> 00:19:56,600
Mind you, it'll hide their blushes,
won't it?
344
00:19:56,600 --> 00:19:58,080
Like having their underwear on.
345
00:19:58,080 --> 00:19:59,680
GREGG LAUGHS
346
00:20:06,200 --> 00:20:09,600
Fish fingers are one of the most
popular products in our freezer,
347
00:20:09,600 --> 00:20:13,920
but many people consider frozen to
be inferior to fresh.
348
00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:15,880
Cherry went to find out if that's
true.
349
00:20:19,680 --> 00:20:21,840
To be honest, I think of the stuff
in my freezer
350
00:20:21,840 --> 00:20:25,240
as what I use when I need
to get a meal on the table quickly.
351
00:20:25,240 --> 00:20:27,560
It's certainly not what I would turn
to
352
00:20:27,560 --> 00:20:30,080
if I was going to make something
special.
353
00:20:31,360 --> 00:20:35,040
But one chef is hoping to change my
mind.
354
00:20:35,040 --> 00:20:38,320
Hi guys, I'm Miguel Barclay, welcome
the One Pound Meals YouTube
channel.
355
00:20:38,320 --> 00:20:41,160
Today, we're going to be cooking
a lovely
356
00:20:41,160 --> 00:20:43,640
fresh and vibrant pea
cannelloni.
357
00:20:45,480 --> 00:20:49,560
Internet star Miguel made his name
devising recipes
358
00:20:49,560 --> 00:20:52,080
that cost less than £1 a portion,
359
00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:57,120
and he's passionate about the cost
savings you can find in the freezer
aisle.
360
00:20:57,120 --> 00:20:59,160
So I've set him a
challenge...
361
00:20:59,160 --> 00:21:01,640
Can he use frozen ingredients to
produce
362
00:21:01,640 --> 00:21:05,280
two top-notch dinner party dishes
that can pass for fresh?
363
00:21:06,320 --> 00:21:07,840
Hi, Miguel. Hey, Cherry.
364
00:21:07,840 --> 00:21:09,160
Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you.
365
00:21:09,160 --> 00:21:12,920
So what are we cooking?
That is a lobster tail.
366
00:21:12,920 --> 00:21:15,360
Exactly. We're going straight in
367
00:21:15,360 --> 00:21:18,400
with a classic high-end posh dish
and I'm
368
00:21:18,400 --> 00:21:20,640
going to show you how to do
a lobster Thermidor with it.
369
00:21:21,760 --> 00:21:25,920
All the ingredients Miguel's using
were bought frozen.
370
00:21:25,920 --> 00:21:28,720
So, you've got your lovely defrosted
lobster tail,
371
00:21:28,720 --> 00:21:32,920
and because it's been frozen,
is it cheaper?
372
00:21:32,920 --> 00:21:37,920
Yes, so this one comes in at £5,
and if you were going to buy this
fresh,
373
00:21:37,920 --> 00:21:40,440
you're looking at about the £7.50
mark.
374
00:21:40,440 --> 00:21:42,200
So that's a lot cheaper.
375
00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:44,920
It's a high cost gourmet ingredient,
376
00:21:44,920 --> 00:21:48,400
but Miguel's pairing it with
something a little less high-end
377
00:21:48,400 --> 00:21:50,280
which I've never seen before.
378
00:21:50,280 --> 00:21:52,080
Frozen cheese sauce?
379
00:21:52,080 --> 00:21:56,000
My head says I understand, my heart
says no, it's wrong!
380
00:21:57,320 --> 00:22:03,160
These cheesy pellets can be tipped
straight into the frying pan without
defrosting.
381
00:22:03,160 --> 00:22:06,720
We finish the sauce with some frozen
onions and garlic.
382
00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:08,240
Frozen onions?
383
00:22:08,240 --> 00:22:10,480
Why are these not in my life?
384
00:22:10,480 --> 00:22:14,560
Well, a lot of people A,
don't know they exist, and B,
385
00:22:14,560 --> 00:22:16,000
just don't have any faith in them.
386
00:22:19,240 --> 00:22:22,440
Frozen onions and garlic are a
revelation.
387
00:22:22,440 --> 00:22:26,320
Exactly. So this dish here, we only
need like a quarter of an onion,
388
00:22:26,320 --> 00:22:28,560
so what would we do with the other
three quarters of an onion?
389
00:22:28,560 --> 00:22:31,040
Well, no, you put it in the fridge
and you let it rot.
390
00:22:31,040 --> 00:22:32,160
Exactly. That's what happens.
391
00:22:32,160 --> 00:22:34,920
And then one day you stumble across
it and throw it out.
392
00:22:34,920 --> 00:22:37,200
And you go, "Oh, that's what that
smell is!"
393
00:22:37,200 --> 00:22:41,840
In Britain, we throw away over
7 million tonnes of food every year,
394
00:22:41,840 --> 00:22:44,000
mostly bread, fruit and veg.
395
00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:49,080
Frozen food allows you to use only
the amount you need,
396
00:22:49,080 --> 00:22:50,840
so you chuck less in the bin.
397
00:22:52,680 --> 00:22:57,160
I suppose the only other big
question is, does it taste OK?
398
00:23:00,840 --> 00:23:02,440
It's got to be good, you know...
399
00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:12,760
A lovely bit of crunch.
It's so good, I'm so happy!
400
00:23:12,760 --> 00:23:15,400
I'm loving the lobster starter,
401
00:23:15,400 --> 00:23:19,320
but will Miguel's main course
turn out as tasty?
402
00:23:19,320 --> 00:23:21,320
It's duck breast and cabbage mash,
403
00:23:21,320 --> 00:23:25,000
garnished with something I'd never
think of buying frozen -
404
00:23:25,000 --> 00:23:26,360
asparagus.
405
00:23:26,360 --> 00:23:30,800
With some frozen items, do you lose
some of the nutritional value?
406
00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:34,480
Well, actually, some frozen items
you get more nutritional value.
407
00:23:34,480 --> 00:23:38,160
So the peas are packaged within
two hours of picking,
408
00:23:38,160 --> 00:23:41,400
so you're actually preserving them
at their absolute peak.
409
00:23:42,800 --> 00:23:45,680
So this is as nutritionally good
410
00:23:45,680 --> 00:23:51,480
as if it were fresh potatoes and
fresh cabbage? Yep, definitely.
411
00:23:51,480 --> 00:23:54,800
It looks fabulous, but does it taste
good?
412
00:23:57,960 --> 00:24:00,120
It just tastes really nice.
413
00:24:00,120 --> 00:24:04,200
It just goes to show how frozen
produce can taste as good as fresh.
414
00:24:04,200 --> 00:24:08,520
You have revolutionised my freezer
use with pellets of mash.
415
00:24:08,520 --> 00:24:11,480
I would not have guessed that,
I'll be honest.
416
00:24:11,480 --> 00:24:15,400
Well, I'm won over,
but are Miguel's dishes good enough
417
00:24:15,400 --> 00:24:18,680
to convince other people to rethink
frozen produce?
418
00:24:19,800 --> 00:24:23,320
We took them out onto the street to
find out.
419
00:24:23,320 --> 00:24:26,200
Wow, that's lovely.
The lobster's extremely good.
420
00:24:26,200 --> 00:24:27,560
You like the lobster? Absolutely.
421
00:24:30,960 --> 00:24:32,240
Oh, I say!
422
00:24:33,520 --> 00:24:35,440
Is that a winner, winner?
423
00:24:35,440 --> 00:24:38,160
What would you say if I told you it
was made entirely out of frozen
424
00:24:38,160 --> 00:24:40,880
ingredients? No way.
Yes, way!
425
00:24:40,880 --> 00:24:42,840
Is this frozen?
426
00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:45,200
Yeah, 100% frozen ingredients.
427
00:24:45,200 --> 00:24:48,080
Tastes very fresh. I'm surprised.
That really is lovely.
428
00:24:48,080 --> 00:24:50,680
It is really nice. I mean it
doesn't look like frozen food.
429
00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:56,600
A delicious gourmet meal and
every one of the ingredients
was originally frozen.
430
00:24:56,600 --> 00:24:57,840
I like him!
431
00:25:06,120 --> 00:25:09,560
At the factory, it's been four hours
and 20 minutes
432
00:25:09,560 --> 00:25:11,600
since my frozen cod arrived.
433
00:25:13,280 --> 00:25:15,760
On the production line my naked
fish fingers
434
00:25:15,760 --> 00:25:17,320
are heading for the coating
435
00:25:17,320 --> 00:25:20,440
area, where Nick Hill's in charge.
436
00:25:20,440 --> 00:25:24,880
Nick, I've been sent over here to
learn about the batter.
437
00:25:24,880 --> 00:25:26,160
Yeah.
438
00:25:26,160 --> 00:25:31,600
This 150-litre vat of batter must be
constantly topped up to make sure it
439
00:25:31,600 --> 00:25:35,040
never runs out, and today that's my
job.
440
00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:37,880
What do I have to do? I've topped
this up with water already,
441
00:25:37,880 --> 00:25:40,880
next thing is a couple of shovels
of ice in there.
442
00:25:40,880 --> 00:25:44,240
Why ice? Keep the temperature of the
batter down.
443
00:25:44,240 --> 00:25:45,720
You want me to do it? Yes, please.
444
00:25:49,320 --> 00:25:52,840
It's rock hard!
Iced up.
445
00:25:52,840 --> 00:25:56,440
The ice will keep the temperature
of the batter mix at 10 degrees,
446
00:25:56,440 --> 00:26:00,280
which stops it getting sticky
and over coating the fingers.
447
00:26:00,280 --> 00:26:04,120
Perfect. The next bit is bag of the
batter mix.
448
00:26:04,120 --> 00:26:07,160
So, basically this is like any
batter at home - this is flour and
water?
449
00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:10,000
Yeah, yeah, that's all it is, yeah.
And a bit of ice to keep it cool?
450
00:26:10,000 --> 00:26:11,280
Yeah.
451
00:26:11,280 --> 00:26:13,440
But on a much bigger scale.
Yeah, big, big scale.
452
00:26:15,800 --> 00:26:17,520
Whoa!
HE GRUNTS
453
00:26:27,400 --> 00:26:30,080
If you shut the lid,
454
00:26:30,080 --> 00:26:33,240
now we've got some controls just
around the other side.
455
00:26:33,240 --> 00:26:34,520
That one and them two.
456
00:26:35,520 --> 00:26:39,280
That one? Yeah. Then them two. Yeah.
457
00:26:39,280 --> 00:26:41,240
Batter!
458
00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:46,200
Inside the mixer, a blade turns
1,200 times every minute,
459
00:26:46,200 --> 00:26:49,880
blending the flour, water and ice
together.
460
00:26:49,880 --> 00:26:51,440
Can't take long to mix, can it?
461
00:26:51,440 --> 00:26:54,600
No, you'd like to leave it for five
minutes to get all the lumps out.
462
00:26:54,600 --> 00:26:56,600
If I lift this up, will it go
everywhere?
463
00:26:56,600 --> 00:26:58,200
A little bit. Let's have a look.
464
00:27:03,280 --> 00:27:05,640
There you are. All mixed.
There we go!
465
00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:06,800
Looking good.
466
00:27:08,080 --> 00:27:10,480
Next job would be, if you just lift
the lid all the way up,
467
00:27:10,480 --> 00:27:13,760
there's a little visco cup just at
this pocket here.
468
00:27:13,760 --> 00:27:16,360
A little disco cup?
What's it called?
469
00:27:16,360 --> 00:27:19,320
Viscosity. Checks how thick the
batter is.
470
00:27:19,320 --> 00:27:21,880
'We need to measure how long it
takes for the batter...'
471
00:27:21,880 --> 00:27:25,160
Go! '..to pour through a hole in the
bottom of the cup.
472
00:27:25,160 --> 00:27:28,560
'We're aiming for between 8-15
seconds.'
473
00:27:28,560 --> 00:27:32,080
Nearly! Five seconds. A little bit
more batter and we'll be there.
474
00:27:32,080 --> 00:27:34,200
It's a matter of trial and error.
475
00:27:41,720 --> 00:27:44,440
Do you want to
turn the machine on again, please.
476
00:27:52,960 --> 00:27:55,600
This place was really clean
when I arrived.
477
00:27:56,640 --> 00:27:59,760
I've held up the world's fish finger
production,
478
00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:01,720
messing about with a bag of flour.
479
00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:05,080
Making a mess with a bag of flour!
480
00:28:05,080 --> 00:28:07,920
There we go, it's stopped.
It's stopped.
481
00:28:07,920 --> 00:28:10,960
Oh, that's so thick,
so thick it's unbelievable.
482
00:28:10,960 --> 00:28:13,080
Stop! Ten.
483
00:28:13,080 --> 00:28:15,000
Yes!
484
00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:19,920
I've never been so happy
to see the inside of a visco cup.
485
00:28:19,920 --> 00:28:23,080
I'm in a right mess.
I've got to go and have a shower.
486
00:28:23,080 --> 00:28:25,040
It's going to take an hour to clean
up.
487
00:28:26,320 --> 00:28:28,760
Nick, I'm so sorry.
No problem.
488
00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:37,120
My freshly mixed cauldron of batter
is enough to coat almost 8,000
fish fingers.
489
00:28:37,120 --> 00:28:40,840
It's pumped directly from the mixer
to the battering station.
490
00:28:43,080 --> 00:28:44,360
As the fish fingers arrive,
491
00:28:44,360 --> 00:28:47,880
they're trapped between two wire
mesh conveyors
492
00:28:47,880 --> 00:28:50,600
and carried into the river of
batter.
493
00:28:50,600 --> 00:28:52,960
Why are they between two cages like
that?
494
00:28:52,960 --> 00:28:55,400
Just to help drag them through,
otherwise they'd just be floating.
495
00:28:55,400 --> 00:28:58,040
Of course they would.
What's this bit called?
496
00:28:58,040 --> 00:28:59,840
Batter enrober.
497
00:28:59,840 --> 00:29:02,160
A batter enrober. Yep.
498
00:29:02,160 --> 00:29:05,720
So that guarantees that these fish
fingers are well and truly coated...
499
00:29:05,720 --> 00:29:09,320
Yep. ..in my brilliantly made
batter? Yeah.
500
00:29:13,520 --> 00:29:15,160
Hey! That's it.
501
00:29:15,160 --> 00:29:17,840
Straight to the roto-crumb.
The what?
502
00:29:17,840 --> 00:29:21,720
Roto-crumber. Roto-crumber? Yeah.
503
00:29:21,720 --> 00:29:23,200
Posh name - breader.
504
00:29:25,120 --> 00:29:30,000
Premade breadcrumbs are poured
evenly across the
conveyer from a nearby drum.
505
00:29:30,000 --> 00:29:34,320
And the fingers are plunged into an
avalanche of crumbs.
506
00:29:34,320 --> 00:29:38,880
Do you know what? It looks like they
are diving into a wave. Yeah.
Doesn't it?
507
00:29:38,880 --> 00:29:41,640
Does look pretty good, though.
Come on! Last one in is a rotten
egg!
508
00:29:45,680 --> 00:29:47,960
I've had naked fish fingers.
509
00:29:47,960 --> 00:29:50,000
Then I've seen them put their
underwear on. Yeah.
510
00:29:50,000 --> 00:29:51,840
Now they've got a robe on.
511
00:29:51,840 --> 00:29:54,680
They will be fully dressed in a
minute, I can tell.
512
00:29:54,680 --> 00:29:55,720
Yeah. Hopefully.
513
00:29:58,800 --> 00:30:02,160
Erm... Where've they gone?
Disappeared.
514
00:30:02,160 --> 00:30:04,280
They are somewhere... Here we go.
515
00:30:08,720 --> 00:30:10,600
It's like fishing for fish fingers.
516
00:30:10,600 --> 00:30:11,640
NICK LAUGHS
517
00:30:11,640 --> 00:30:14,400
Hang on, this is a game, this,
isn't it?
518
00:30:14,400 --> 00:30:16,000
That's a lot of bread crumbs.
Oh, yeah.
519
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:18,880
And that's to make sure they are
completely and utterly coated?
520
00:30:18,880 --> 00:30:22,120
Yeah, fully covered all the way
around.
521
00:30:22,120 --> 00:30:25,120
Any excess is removed by an air
blower,
522
00:30:25,120 --> 00:30:27,280
leaving an even coating all around.
523
00:30:29,800 --> 00:30:31,760
And these are still frozen rock
hard, right?
524
00:30:31,760 --> 00:30:35,000
Still rock hard. Yeah. How many of
these are we making, Nick?
525
00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:36,920
150 a minute.
526
00:30:36,920 --> 00:30:38,760
Really? Yeah.
527
00:30:38,760 --> 00:30:41,280
Quite a lot of fingers. Absolutely.
528
00:30:41,280 --> 00:30:44,800
I think they've journeyed more
now than when they were
actually whole fish. Yeah.
529
00:30:45,960 --> 00:30:47,480
That's a beautiful thing, mate.
530
00:30:47,480 --> 00:30:50,240
Beautiful! That is somebody's tea.
531
00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:52,840
Yeah. Actually, I wouldn't mind if
it was mine, to be honest.
532
00:30:52,840 --> 00:30:55,160
I was going to say, I could do with
one right now.
533
00:30:57,440 --> 00:31:00,920
My frozen sticks of cod are heading
for the fryer,
534
00:31:00,920 --> 00:31:04,600
where Mel is standing by to answer
my questions.
535
00:31:04,600 --> 00:31:06,960
What oil do you use? Rapeseed oil.
536
00:31:06,960 --> 00:31:09,800
Do you know what temperature?
200 degrees.
537
00:31:09,800 --> 00:31:11,400
For how long? 45 seconds.
538
00:31:12,880 --> 00:31:14,480
That's quick. Very quick.
539
00:31:14,480 --> 00:31:16,760
Can I see them up the other end?
Yep.
540
00:31:22,120 --> 00:31:24,240
That's not enough heat to cook them,
is it?
541
00:31:24,240 --> 00:31:25,360
No, they're not cooked.
542
00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:28,040
It's just literally cooking the
breadcrumbs, if you like.
543
00:31:28,040 --> 00:31:30,320
So what's the fish like inside?
544
00:31:30,320 --> 00:31:32,680
Shall we pick one up and try?
545
00:31:32,680 --> 00:31:34,200
It's still frozen.
546
00:31:34,200 --> 00:31:35,240
Oh!
547
00:31:36,520 --> 00:31:38,080
Oh! Ow!
548
00:31:38,080 --> 00:31:39,320
Very hot, so be careful.
549
00:31:39,320 --> 00:31:42,640
It's really hot on the outside and
it's frozen in the middle.
550
00:31:42,640 --> 00:31:44,000
That's supposed to be like that,
right?
551
00:31:44,000 --> 00:31:46,360
Yes. So you've just cooked the
breadcrumbs?
552
00:31:46,360 --> 00:31:48,920
Literally. The intention is not to
cook the fish at all.
553
00:31:48,920 --> 00:31:50,600
It is literally just to cook the
breadcrumbs.
554
00:31:50,600 --> 00:31:52,080
Yes, it's frozen. Yeah.
555
00:31:52,080 --> 00:31:55,600
They came in as a block frozen.
They're going out frozen. Yes.
556
00:31:55,600 --> 00:32:01,480
The fish is in exactly the same
condition as it was when Cherry saw
it in Iceland? Yes.
557
00:32:01,480 --> 00:32:03,720
They're a little bit dark,
aren't they?
558
00:32:03,720 --> 00:32:06,240
They are at the moment, but over the
next couple of days they'll actually
559
00:32:06,240 --> 00:32:08,040
come down in colour?
What, they'll fade?
560
00:32:08,040 --> 00:32:10,960
They'll fade, but it doesn't affect
the flavour.
561
00:32:10,960 --> 00:32:14,280
I get it, you don't actually want
them this dark,
562
00:32:14,280 --> 00:32:16,880
you cook them this dark because you
know they're going to fade?
563
00:32:16,880 --> 00:32:18,360
That's right.
564
00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:21,600
Hey! A bit like me with my suntan
on holiday.
565
00:32:21,600 --> 00:32:24,520
Get a bit red and lobstery cos I
know I'll be golden at the end.
566
00:32:25,600 --> 00:32:27,680
That's surprised me. I love that.
567
00:32:30,360 --> 00:32:33,240
My fish fingers are almost ready
for somebody's plate.
568
00:32:35,440 --> 00:32:39,920
Meanwhile, Ruth is in London
discovering what seafood they were
putting on
569
00:32:39,920 --> 00:32:42,320
their plates back in the 19th
century.
570
00:32:43,680 --> 00:32:47,000
RUTH: Rewind 170 years and this
place,
571
00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:50,080
Billingsgate, was the biggest fish
market in the world.
572
00:32:56,120 --> 00:33:03,000
Over 3,000 people here shifted
120,000 tonnes of fish a year.
573
00:33:07,520 --> 00:33:11,320
And the most popular seafood product
was something rather surprising.
574
00:33:13,400 --> 00:33:16,320
Food historian Drew Smith is here
to fill me in.
575
00:33:16,320 --> 00:33:19,440
Drew, lovely to see you.
Lovely to see you.
576
00:33:19,440 --> 00:33:24,120
So, what exactly was the best
selling fish in Victorian London?
577
00:33:24,120 --> 00:33:27,160
Oysters. Oysters! Absolutely.
578
00:33:27,160 --> 00:33:31,320
Cos all of this bank here would
have been full of oysters.
579
00:33:31,320 --> 00:33:34,320
There would have been eight, nine,
ten barges bringing them up here
580
00:33:34,320 --> 00:33:36,200
and they would be shovelling them up
here,
581
00:33:36,200 --> 00:33:39,440
and from here they'd put them
on a horse and cart,
582
00:33:39,440 --> 00:33:40,920
take them all around London.
583
00:33:43,120 --> 00:33:49,080
In 1851, Billingsgate fishmongers
sold 500 million oysters.
584
00:33:49,080 --> 00:33:52,920
That's 200 for every Londoner.
585
00:33:52,920 --> 00:33:56,280
At a penny for four, they were
affordable for everyone.
586
00:33:57,480 --> 00:33:59,480
So, this really is a food of
everybody?
587
00:33:59,480 --> 00:34:02,600
Rich, poor, makes no difference,
there's lots of it about,
588
00:34:02,600 --> 00:34:04,880
everybody's eating them?
Yep, and it was London's food.
589
00:34:04,880 --> 00:34:08,520
I mean, they come sort of
pre-packaged, really, in a way?
590
00:34:08,520 --> 00:34:09,760
In their own shell?
591
00:34:09,760 --> 00:34:12,360
Yes, they were the convenience food
of the Victorian era.
592
00:34:12,360 --> 00:34:14,160
You know, they were easy to handle.
593
00:34:14,160 --> 00:34:17,240
You could eat them on the street, of
course, without needing any cooking.
594
00:34:18,880 --> 00:34:23,080
Victorians also believed
this protein-packed shellfish
595
00:34:23,080 --> 00:34:25,360
had a rather saucy side effect.
596
00:34:25,360 --> 00:34:28,720
Oysters are a very healthy food and
it's one of the reasons they got the
597
00:34:28,720 --> 00:34:30,360
reputation as an aphrodisiac.
598
00:34:30,360 --> 00:34:32,400
Because actually you'd feel a lot
better
599
00:34:32,400 --> 00:34:34,360
because you were probably so
depleted.
600
00:34:34,360 --> 00:34:37,360
Of course, if you had been living on
bread, bread, bread, and bread,
601
00:34:37,360 --> 00:34:38,920
with your bit of tea...
HE GROANS
602
00:34:38,920 --> 00:34:41,400
Yeah. And then you get a sudden hit
of all that protein,
603
00:34:41,400 --> 00:34:43,760
it's going to have
a big impact on a person.
604
00:34:43,760 --> 00:34:45,240
It did, yeah.
THEY LAUGH
605
00:34:48,880 --> 00:34:53,400
Oysters were so cheap and popular
that pubs like this one in Bethnal
Green
606
00:34:53,400 --> 00:34:56,080
would offer them free with
your pint.
607
00:34:56,080 --> 00:34:57,880
Oh, they look good.
608
00:34:57,880 --> 00:34:59,640
So, what changed?
609
00:34:59,640 --> 00:35:03,000
Why is it we now think of oysters
as purely posh food?
610
00:35:03,000 --> 00:35:05,680
Well, you can track it down through
these newspaper cuttings we've got
611
00:35:05,680 --> 00:35:12,120
here, right down to November
10th, 1902. As specific as that!
612
00:35:12,120 --> 00:35:16,480
On that date, guests at an
oyster-laden banquet in Winchester
613
00:35:16,480 --> 00:35:18,880
suffered catastrophic food
poisoning.
614
00:35:18,880 --> 00:35:22,320
Half the guests at the banquet
went sick.
615
00:35:22,320 --> 00:35:24,040
And it says here...
This is a first report.
616
00:35:24,040 --> 00:35:26,600
"Nearly a dozen of the most
prominent citizens of Winchester,
617
00:35:26,600 --> 00:35:32,160
"including the Dean, the headmaster
of the college and a councillor are
on the sick list."
618
00:35:32,160 --> 00:35:33,680
Good gracious.
619
00:35:33,680 --> 00:35:37,760
In all, 63 guests at the Winchester
banquet became ill,
620
00:35:37,760 --> 00:35:40,520
some of them diagnosed with typhoid.
621
00:35:40,520 --> 00:35:43,920
And things went from bad to worse.
622
00:35:43,920 --> 00:35:47,840
"Mr E Douglas Godwin,
one of the best-known legal
practitioners in Hampshire,
623
00:35:47,840 --> 00:35:52,080
"died yesterday at Winchester,
the fourth victim of the illness."
624
00:35:52,080 --> 00:35:55,920
These are really prominent people
who are dying, aren't they?
625
00:35:55,920 --> 00:35:59,600
The cause of death was traced back
to the oysters and a stretch of
626
00:35:59,600 --> 00:36:03,440
the south coast that had
been contaminated with sewage.
627
00:36:03,440 --> 00:36:08,200
The town Emsworth had built
their drains over the oyster beds
628
00:36:08,200 --> 00:36:12,880
and had polluted the oyster beds,
which had caused typhoid.
629
00:36:12,880 --> 00:36:13,960
Unfortunately...
630
00:36:13,960 --> 00:36:16,920
Typhoid passed straight through
the oysters and back into people.
631
00:36:16,920 --> 00:36:17,960
Exactly. Oh...
632
00:36:19,160 --> 00:36:24,240
This highly contagious waterborne
disease had spread through the
oyster beds.
633
00:36:24,240 --> 00:36:27,720
When word got out, the press
had a field day.
634
00:36:27,720 --> 00:36:29,480
This is the Worcester Chronicle.
635
00:36:29,480 --> 00:36:32,680
This is the Yorkshire Post,
and this is the Manchester Courier.
636
00:36:32,680 --> 00:36:34,760
So the story spread right across
the country.
637
00:36:34,760 --> 00:36:38,680
This isn't a local Winchester story,
this is a national scandal.
638
00:36:38,680 --> 00:36:42,440
One that sounded the death knell for
the British oyster industry.
639
00:36:42,440 --> 00:36:45,760
The oyster beds were closed down and
actually it was the start of
640
00:36:45,760 --> 00:36:47,840
what we call public health these
days,
641
00:36:47,840 --> 00:36:51,120
and oysters just went into complete
decline.
642
00:36:51,120 --> 00:36:53,360
So it's absolute
as definite as that.
643
00:36:53,360 --> 00:36:55,800
We have one incident of an outbreak.
644
00:36:55,800 --> 00:36:57,840
Bonk. End of the oyster industry.
645
00:36:57,840 --> 00:37:00,200
This completely killed it, yes,
absolutely.
646
00:37:00,200 --> 00:37:05,200
So Britain's original convenience
fish product disappeared from our
tables.
647
00:37:06,640 --> 00:37:08,960
As recently as 1990s,
648
00:37:08,960 --> 00:37:12,920
you could almost say the oyster
industry was over in this country.
649
00:37:12,920 --> 00:37:17,440
And it's only in the last 20 or so
years that things have started to
pick up.
650
00:37:17,440 --> 00:37:22,440
Today, oysters are carefully
cultivated and regarded as
a luxury food.
651
00:37:22,440 --> 00:37:26,520
In fancy restaurants they can cost
upwards of £2 each.
652
00:37:26,520 --> 00:37:31,920
That's a far cry from their glory
days as an everyday staple in
Victorian London.
653
00:37:36,200 --> 00:37:39,040
Back in Caistor, my fish fingers
look finished.
654
00:37:40,320 --> 00:37:41,560
But before I can pack them,
655
00:37:41,560 --> 00:37:45,320
I have to oversee a rather
surprising delivery.
656
00:37:45,320 --> 00:37:47,480
Hello, brother. Hello there.
Are you all right?
657
00:37:47,480 --> 00:37:54,640
Every week, the factory receives two
25-ton tankers of liquid nitrogen.
658
00:37:54,640 --> 00:37:56,840
Is this a particularly scary
product?
659
00:37:56,840 --> 00:37:58,680
It can be scary. You've got to be
trained,
660
00:37:58,680 --> 00:38:01,280
but it can be scary in the wrong
hands.
661
00:38:01,280 --> 00:38:02,880
What's dangerous about it?
662
00:38:02,880 --> 00:38:04,920
It's very cold, so it can burn you.
663
00:38:04,920 --> 00:38:08,920
And what happens if a load of liquid
nitrogen goes flooding out of the
tank?
664
00:38:08,920 --> 00:38:11,040
Well, you don't want to be
around.
665
00:38:11,040 --> 00:38:13,520
Cos it will just freeze
everything what's around it.
666
00:38:13,520 --> 00:38:16,880
Nitrogen occurs naturally in the air
around us.
667
00:38:16,880 --> 00:38:23,000
Most of the time it's a gas,
but when it is cooled down to minus
196 degrees Celsius,
668
00:38:23,000 --> 00:38:26,920
it becomes a liquid, making it
easier to transport.
669
00:38:26,920 --> 00:38:30,160
And it's just what I need
to freeze my fish fingers.
670
00:38:30,160 --> 00:38:31,440
Are we ready to unload, boss?
671
00:38:31,440 --> 00:38:34,440
We are, mate. Come on, what do we
do? Right.
672
00:38:34,440 --> 00:38:37,000
I've got to press these two buttons,
start the engine.
673
00:38:38,680 --> 00:38:40,520
That's started. That's started.
674
00:38:40,520 --> 00:38:42,800
Make sure that the delivery valve is
open
675
00:38:42,800 --> 00:38:45,240
and now I'm going to start the
pump.
676
00:38:46,720 --> 00:38:50,520
PUMP WHIRS
There goes the pump.
677
00:38:50,520 --> 00:38:55,400
The liquid nitrogen is pumped into
the on-site storage tank.
678
00:38:55,400 --> 00:38:57,280
How long is this going to take to
unload?
679
00:38:57,280 --> 00:39:00,400
About an hour. Mate, I'll leave you
to it, shall I?
680
00:39:00,400 --> 00:39:03,120
Thank you very much. I've seen lots
of lorries being unloaded.
681
00:39:03,120 --> 00:39:05,960
This is my favourite. Great. Pleased
to have met you. Thanks, mate.
682
00:39:10,800 --> 00:39:15,000
My frozen cod arrived five hours and
21 minutes ago.
683
00:39:16,440 --> 00:39:19,480
Now, my coated fish fingers are
heading to the freezer.
684
00:39:21,640 --> 00:39:23,000
That's a serious big freezer.
685
00:39:23,000 --> 00:39:25,920
That must be the liquid nitrogen
that I saw being delivered, right?
686
00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:28,360
It is. How cold is that?
687
00:39:28,360 --> 00:39:29,800
It's currently at minus 50.
688
00:39:31,480 --> 00:39:34,840
Nitrogen gas is sprayed in the top
of the freezer,
689
00:39:34,840 --> 00:39:38,480
rapidly reducing the temperature of
the fish fingers
690
00:39:38,480 --> 00:39:40,880
to minus 15 degrees.
691
00:39:40,880 --> 00:39:43,960
This is called flash freezing.
692
00:39:43,960 --> 00:39:47,880
It preserves the fish, giving it a
shelf life of up to 12 months.
693
00:39:48,960 --> 00:39:52,320
Does it just go straight through a
flat conveyor and come out the other
side?
694
00:39:52,320 --> 00:39:54,280
No. Inside there is like a
corkscrew.
695
00:39:55,640 --> 00:40:01,040
The fish fingers slowly move upwards
on a 110-metre spiral conveyor.
696
00:40:02,880 --> 00:40:08,480
They make 16 rotations, and after 18
minutes they emerge from the top.
697
00:40:10,880 --> 00:40:12,360
GREGG CHUCKLES
698
00:40:13,600 --> 00:40:18,040
Hang on a minute. So these fish
fingers go up on a corkscrew and
come down on a slide?
699
00:40:18,040 --> 00:40:21,840
Yes, it's like a fairground
for fish fingers.
700
00:40:21,840 --> 00:40:23,560
It certainly is, isn't it?
701
00:40:28,480 --> 00:40:32,880
180 fish fingers slide out of the
freezer every minute.
702
00:40:34,520 --> 00:40:36,680
OK, can I get one? Yes, you can,
if you are quick.
703
00:40:37,960 --> 00:40:39,320
Wow, that is frozen solid.
704
00:40:40,840 --> 00:40:42,800
Wow, that is... You can't get much
more frozen than that.
705
00:40:42,800 --> 00:40:44,240
FISH FINGER CLANGS
706
00:40:44,240 --> 00:40:47,480
Do they start to get warmer after
they come out the freezer?
707
00:40:47,480 --> 00:40:48,960
No, total opposite.
708
00:40:48,960 --> 00:40:51,360
It's so cold in there that they
continue to get colder.
709
00:40:51,360 --> 00:40:52,640
Do they really?
710
00:40:52,640 --> 00:40:55,240
Honestly. How many degrees colder
can they get?
711
00:40:55,240 --> 00:40:59,360
They come out there roughly minus 15
degrees and they end up minus 18.
712
00:40:59,360 --> 00:41:01,720
There are so many things in here
I find remarkable.
713
00:41:01,720 --> 00:41:04,560
I kind of like to think the fish
fingers are having a nice time,
don't you?
714
00:41:04,560 --> 00:41:06,080
I think it looks like they are.
715
00:41:13,280 --> 00:41:17,280
This factory is packed to the
gunwales with hi-tech equipment,
716
00:41:17,280 --> 00:41:19,200
like this nitrogen freezer.
717
00:41:19,200 --> 00:41:22,640
But there is a proud history of
low-tech fish production
718
00:41:22,640 --> 00:41:26,080
right here in Grimsby.
Cherry has been to lend a hand.
719
00:41:32,080 --> 00:41:34,960
Some modern preservation techniques,
like freezing,
720
00:41:34,960 --> 00:41:37,160
have been around for about a
century.
721
00:41:37,160 --> 00:41:42,680
But there's one way of preserving
that's been around since the dawn of
time.
722
00:41:44,960 --> 00:41:50,360
This smoke house has been here for
the last 90 years and produces
723
00:41:50,360 --> 00:41:52,840
15 tonnes of fish every week.
724
00:41:52,840 --> 00:41:58,240
Third-generation fish smoker Angie
King is going to show me how it's
done.
725
00:41:58,240 --> 00:42:02,000
What kind of fish are we using?
This is fresh Icelandic haddock,
726
00:42:02,000 --> 00:42:05,280
and it doesn't get much better than
that.
727
00:42:05,280 --> 00:42:07,400
That is a perfect, perfect fillet of
fish.
728
00:42:07,400 --> 00:42:09,920
And you're going to make it into a
perfect fillet of smoked fish.
729
00:42:12,120 --> 00:42:19,400
It all begins with a 165-litre bath
of water, and 25 kilos of salt.
730
00:42:21,240 --> 00:42:24,400
Oh, wow! Now you have the special
brining shovel.
731
00:42:26,160 --> 00:42:28,880
Now they are mixed together, we have
created a brine.
732
00:42:30,080 --> 00:42:33,200
Why do you brine the fish first?
733
00:42:33,200 --> 00:42:35,040
We brine fish because it's a
preservative
734
00:42:35,040 --> 00:42:38,320
that is added to the fish.
It gives the fish extra life.
735
00:42:38,320 --> 00:42:40,120
So we've got our briny water.
736
00:42:40,120 --> 00:42:42,280
Is that it? Are we done?
No, not at all.
737
00:42:42,280 --> 00:42:45,440
We've now got the important
ingredient, which is the colour.
738
00:42:45,440 --> 00:42:48,160
I thought that the colour developed
while it was smoking.
739
00:42:48,160 --> 00:42:50,280
I think that's an old adage.
740
00:42:50,280 --> 00:42:51,640
People have always thought that,
741
00:42:51,640 --> 00:42:54,400
that the fish became yellow when it
went into the chimneys.
742
00:42:54,400 --> 00:42:56,880
And actually it isn't. It's the
colour that we add to the fish.
743
00:42:56,880 --> 00:42:58,440
So, why bother dyeing it?
744
00:42:59,440 --> 00:43:01,320
Tradition.
745
00:43:01,320 --> 00:43:05,920
The traditional bright yellow colour
comes from adding the natural spices
746
00:43:05,920 --> 00:43:08,280
turmeric and annatto.
747
00:43:08,280 --> 00:43:10,160
You'll see now the colour's starting
to take.
748
00:43:12,360 --> 00:43:13,400
Gorgeous.
749
00:43:15,480 --> 00:43:18,400
The colourful salt bath is ready for
the fish.
750
00:43:21,360 --> 00:43:24,960
Gently just tease the fish into the
brine and let it drop to the bottom.
751
00:43:29,640 --> 00:43:33,120
You're now going to leave it for
five minutes to allow
752
00:43:33,120 --> 00:43:35,200
the salt to infuse into the fish.
753
00:43:35,200 --> 00:43:38,080
It's like when I have a bath and I
ask my kids to just give me
754
00:43:38,080 --> 00:43:41,280
five minutes peace. Absolutely.
755
00:43:41,280 --> 00:43:44,400
The fish are hung out on what's
known as speets.
756
00:43:44,400 --> 00:43:48,640
Try and get them just not touching,
just slightly apart from each other.
757
00:43:50,560 --> 00:43:55,080
They hang for two hours, so the
excess moisture can drip off.
758
00:43:55,080 --> 00:43:58,200
So now what? Now the magic begins.
759
00:43:58,200 --> 00:44:00,640
Are we going to smoke?
We're really going to smoke.
760
00:44:00,640 --> 00:44:04,280
Is it time? Finally. It's that time.
Yes.
761
00:44:04,280 --> 00:44:07,000
Oh, my goodness. Wow!
762
00:44:08,040 --> 00:44:12,040
The factory has 11 chimneys,
each ten metres tall.
763
00:44:13,600 --> 00:44:17,840
The walls are encrusted black with
tar from decades of use.
764
00:44:19,160 --> 00:44:20,560
You would be the runner.
765
00:44:20,560 --> 00:44:23,160
You will pass this fish to a guy in
that chimney.
766
00:44:23,160 --> 00:44:25,000
He will be harnessed up there.
767
00:44:25,000 --> 00:44:27,320
There will be another guy above him,
768
00:44:27,320 --> 00:44:32,680
and that speet of fish will
literally be passed from you, to
him, to him.
769
00:44:32,680 --> 00:44:34,240
This I have to see.
770
00:44:38,600 --> 00:44:39,680
That's it.
771
00:44:41,680 --> 00:44:45,840
120 kilos of fish are loaded into
the chimney.
772
00:44:46,840 --> 00:44:50,120
Once this job is done, it's known as
a full house.
773
00:44:54,320 --> 00:44:55,600
Eddie, that's the last one.
774
00:44:55,600 --> 00:44:58,880
Righto. Up she goes.
775
00:45:00,520 --> 00:45:02,560
All we need now is the smoke.
776
00:45:05,200 --> 00:45:08,480
Embers are added to a pile of
sawdust made from oak,
777
00:45:08,480 --> 00:45:10,280
beech and European softwoods.
778
00:45:12,880 --> 00:45:15,240
And all that will do, in time,
is start to smoulder,
779
00:45:15,240 --> 00:45:17,040
just like that bucket is.
780
00:45:17,040 --> 00:45:18,680
That's what'll smoke your fish.
781
00:45:18,680 --> 00:45:20,520
That's the magic.
782
00:45:21,560 --> 00:45:27,760
The cool smoke, never more than 20
Celsius, infuses into the flesh,
783
00:45:27,760 --> 00:45:31,160
giving the fish its characteristic
delicate flavour.
784
00:45:33,480 --> 00:45:37,680
The haddock hangs in the chimney for
between 14 and 16 hours.
785
00:45:38,640 --> 00:45:42,440
Meanwhile, Angie has yesterday's
batch ready to be packed.
786
00:45:42,440 --> 00:45:45,360
So you literally...
That is beautiful.
787
00:45:45,360 --> 00:45:49,280
It's... Delicate smell.
788
00:45:49,280 --> 00:45:52,280
Springy to the touch and very
glossy.
789
00:45:52,280 --> 00:45:54,960
So you'll pack three fillets on the
bottom, normally.
790
00:45:54,960 --> 00:45:56,880
Now you'll put another piece of
paper on,
791
00:45:56,880 --> 00:45:59,920
you put in two more fillets in this
box,
792
00:45:59,920 --> 00:46:02,600
and that's your first box packed.
793
00:46:02,600 --> 00:46:04,120
Well done, girl. Well done.
794
00:46:04,120 --> 00:46:07,960
I am absolutely as proud as punch
with this box of fish.
795
00:46:07,960 --> 00:46:10,720
Well, I'm so pleased you are,
but would you now finish the rest?
796
00:46:10,720 --> 00:46:11,760
No.
797
00:46:15,360 --> 00:46:17,800
GREGG: Cherry may have abandoned her
task,
798
00:46:17,800 --> 00:46:19,960
but the smoked fish need a bit more
work.
799
00:46:21,760 --> 00:46:24,120
And for that, they've come to our
factory.
800
00:46:25,960 --> 00:46:28,160
The fillets go through a laser
scanner
801
00:46:28,160 --> 00:46:30,160
that precisely measures the fish.
802
00:46:31,760 --> 00:46:34,400
Then a blade divides it into
portions,
803
00:46:34,400 --> 00:46:39,040
cutting it so fast that even in slow
motion you can't see it move.
804
00:46:40,840 --> 00:46:44,760
Finally, perfectly uniform sized
pieces are packed,
805
00:46:44,760 --> 00:46:46,560
ready for the supermarket shelf.
806
00:46:52,880 --> 00:46:56,800
Back on the production line, my fish
fingers are also ready for packing.
807
00:46:59,840 --> 00:47:01,760
So they've come out the freezer.
808
00:47:01,760 --> 00:47:03,480
Now we've just got to pack them.
809
00:47:03,480 --> 00:47:06,920
So just three fingers on top of each
other in a stack like that.
810
00:47:06,920 --> 00:47:08,520
Open the bag, put them in.
811
00:47:08,520 --> 00:47:11,800
Then you just put your next three
in.
812
00:47:11,800 --> 00:47:14,280
Then just take the bag off,
813
00:47:14,280 --> 00:47:15,760
fold it over the top.
814
00:47:18,120 --> 00:47:22,000
Not veg days. Now, Mrs Miggins,
here's your artichoke.
815
00:47:24,280 --> 00:47:28,160
Packing them by hand means that each
fish finger can be given a quick
816
00:47:28,160 --> 00:47:29,600
visual check.
817
00:47:29,600 --> 00:47:33,640
But you have to do it fast, to
prevent a fish finger pile up.
818
00:47:33,640 --> 00:47:36,000
I don't think you're quite the speed
of the girls, though.
819
00:47:36,000 --> 00:47:37,520
Yeah, give me a chance!
820
00:47:41,320 --> 00:47:44,400
The bags move down the line and are
sealed shut,
821
00:47:44,400 --> 00:47:48,240
while the next machine prepares the
cardboard boxes.
822
00:47:50,920 --> 00:47:54,920
The machine folds it into a carton,
folds it over, glues it,
823
00:47:54,920 --> 00:47:58,840
and the ladies and gentlemen that
side put the fingers directly into
the box.
824
00:47:58,840 --> 00:48:02,240
Then the other side gets folded,
glued, comes out the other side.
825
00:48:06,680 --> 00:48:10,760
I like those metal knobs, gently
turning the boxes round the right
way.
826
00:48:10,760 --> 00:48:12,200
Good bit of engineering, that.
827
00:48:12,200 --> 00:48:14,800
Isn't that? The simplest of things,
it's really clever,
828
00:48:14,800 --> 00:48:17,240
and it works perfectly every time.
829
00:48:17,240 --> 00:48:20,520
The boxes continue past the printer.
830
00:48:20,520 --> 00:48:23,840
What's this tube?
That's date coding.
831
00:48:23,840 --> 00:48:25,320
That doesn't even touch the box.
832
00:48:25,320 --> 00:48:27,000
It's just kind of spraying it on.
833
00:48:27,000 --> 00:48:31,720
That's great. That there is a
unique code to that product.
834
00:48:31,720 --> 00:48:35,720
When you trace it back, you can go
back to exactly where it was caught.
835
00:48:35,720 --> 00:48:38,560
That code there tells you who
caught the fish
836
00:48:38,560 --> 00:48:42,160
that was turned into the
fish finger? Yep. No way.
837
00:48:42,160 --> 00:48:46,200
Seriously. The life of that fish,
from the second that we've caught
it,
838
00:48:46,200 --> 00:48:48,880
all the way through until it lands
on somebody's plate,
839
00:48:48,880 --> 00:48:50,480
we can trace it all the way back.
840
00:48:51,880 --> 00:48:54,960
Well, this bloke is a pretty good
fisherman,
841
00:48:54,960 --> 00:48:57,320
because he caught all 12 of these
fish fingers.
842
00:48:59,200 --> 00:49:03,440
Finally, my boxes of fish fingers
are in a delivery carton.
843
00:49:03,440 --> 00:49:07,920
Their 32-metre journey along the
production line is complete.
844
00:49:09,040 --> 00:49:11,440
Is this it, Mel, is this the last
stage?
845
00:49:11,440 --> 00:49:13,680
This is the last stage in here.
846
00:49:13,680 --> 00:49:16,000
We're just putting our outer case
label on,
847
00:49:16,000 --> 00:49:19,200
palletising it up, and then it will
go out to logistics.
848
00:49:19,200 --> 00:49:22,520
Do you know what's different about
this than other factories I've been
to?
849
00:49:22,520 --> 00:49:24,760
This is normally always done by
machine.
850
00:49:26,360 --> 00:49:28,600
I like it that there's people here.
851
00:49:31,160 --> 00:49:33,400
How do you feel when you see them on
the shelves?
852
00:49:33,400 --> 00:49:36,960
Proud. Do you?
Why? Cos we've made them.
853
00:49:39,600 --> 00:49:44,000
1,600 finished boxes come off the
line every hour.
854
00:49:44,000 --> 00:49:49,000
That's a whopping 9,600 individual
fish fingers.
855
00:49:50,080 --> 00:49:54,480
Six hours and 32 minutes after my
frozen cod arrived at the cutting
856
00:49:54,480 --> 00:49:57,160
factory, the finished fish fingers
857
00:49:57,160 --> 00:49:59,960
are being taken to the dispatch
area.
858
00:49:59,960 --> 00:50:02,560
Soon to be in a freezer near you.
859
00:50:05,520 --> 00:50:07,600
Nearly all of us have a freezer in
our homes,
860
00:50:07,600 --> 00:50:14,000
but only one in ten of us is
confident about the rules of
freezing and defrosting.
861
00:50:14,000 --> 00:50:15,520
Cherry went to put that right.
862
00:50:19,640 --> 00:50:22,480
I've got to admit a little bit of
uncertainty
863
00:50:22,480 --> 00:50:26,840
when it comes to the dos and don'ts
of freezing and defrosting food.
864
00:50:26,840 --> 00:50:29,920
I'm pretty sure I know
what's safe and what isn't,
865
00:50:29,920 --> 00:50:32,680
but mostly I'm guessing.
866
00:50:38,560 --> 00:50:41,600
I've come to Abertay University in
Dundee to meet
867
00:50:41,600 --> 00:50:47,800
food scientist Professor
Costas Stathopoulos, who can answer
my questions about freezing.
868
00:50:49,240 --> 00:50:53,360
So, when you freeze food, what
happens?
869
00:50:53,360 --> 00:50:56,720
You freeze water and everything
it contains.
870
00:50:56,720 --> 00:51:00,640
Most food has about 90-95% water.
871
00:51:00,640 --> 00:51:03,560
And bacteria use this water
as a source of food.
872
00:51:03,560 --> 00:51:05,520
So when we freeze,
873
00:51:05,520 --> 00:51:08,480
we are freezing this water, turning
it into ice,
874
00:51:08,480 --> 00:51:12,440
and therefore the bacteria can no
longer access this food.
875
00:51:12,440 --> 00:51:15,680
In the fresh meat case,
if you press it,
876
00:51:15,680 --> 00:51:17,920
you can see that there is moisture
around,
877
00:51:17,920 --> 00:51:22,840
so that indicates that there is the
possibility of bacteria being fed.
878
00:51:22,840 --> 00:51:27,600
While in the frozen, there is no
movement of water at all,
879
00:51:27,600 --> 00:51:30,680
therefore the bacteria, although
they are there,
880
00:51:30,680 --> 00:51:34,280
they just cannot be fed.
So, when you freeze food,
881
00:51:34,280 --> 00:51:38,240
you don't actually freeze or kill
the bacteria.
882
00:51:38,240 --> 00:51:39,840
No, you do not kill them, no.
883
00:51:39,840 --> 00:51:43,560
You freeze the water, which means
the bacteria have nothing to eat,
884
00:51:43,560 --> 00:51:45,840
which means they can't grow. Yes.
885
00:51:47,080 --> 00:51:51,760
Freezing preserves food by keeping
the levels of bacteria in check.
886
00:51:51,760 --> 00:51:54,800
But when it thaws, they can start to
multiply.
887
00:51:54,800 --> 00:51:57,440
So, how do you defrost safely?
888
00:51:59,040 --> 00:52:02,840
As an example, frozen turkey.
What would you do with it?
889
00:52:02,840 --> 00:52:06,080
OK, so I would get this out of my
freezer and I would be very hungry
890
00:52:06,080 --> 00:52:08,240
and I'd want food immediately,
891
00:52:08,240 --> 00:52:11,440
so I'd put it in the microwave on
the defrost setting
892
00:52:11,440 --> 00:52:14,280
and wait until it
was not cold in the middle.
893
00:52:14,280 --> 00:52:16,160
That's my technique.
894
00:52:16,160 --> 00:52:18,480
It is really not the best of
techniques.
895
00:52:18,480 --> 00:52:22,960
It is always a recommendation to
follow the instructions on the
packaging.
896
00:52:22,960 --> 00:52:24,560
So, Costas, I have a confession.
897
00:52:24,560 --> 00:52:29,320
I didn't even know that there were
defrosting instructions on the
packets.
898
00:52:29,320 --> 00:52:33,640
I have never, ever read
even a single one.
899
00:52:35,280 --> 00:52:39,800
The standard advice is to defrost
all meat products in the fridge.
900
00:52:39,800 --> 00:52:43,280
The lower temperature slows down
bacterial growth,
901
00:52:43,280 --> 00:52:45,920
reducing the risk of an upset
stomach.
902
00:52:47,320 --> 00:52:52,120
So, I just wanted to show you how
important it is to thaw food
properly.
903
00:52:53,600 --> 00:52:57,880
In this Petri dish, we use the
frozen turkey we had before,
904
00:52:57,880 --> 00:53:01,240
and then thawed it in the
refrigerator,
905
00:53:01,240 --> 00:53:03,160
as per instructions on the
packaging.
906
00:53:03,160 --> 00:53:04,880
What are these spots?
907
00:53:04,880 --> 00:53:09,840
Every spot corresponds to a colony
of microorganisms having grown
there.
908
00:53:09,840 --> 00:53:12,200
For example, the blue ones are
E. coli.
909
00:53:12,200 --> 00:53:15,080
You see, that, to me, sounds
dangerous.
910
00:53:15,080 --> 00:53:17,160
At low levels, it is not a problem.
911
00:53:17,160 --> 00:53:19,120
That's completely fine. Yeah.
912
00:53:19,120 --> 00:53:22,760
OK. However, if you defrost at room
temperature,
913
00:53:22,760 --> 00:53:25,640
say you just leave it on the kitchen
bench overnight,
914
00:53:25,640 --> 00:53:30,760
it's the same sample, but you see
how much more growth we have had.
915
00:53:30,760 --> 00:53:34,280
Right, that is startling.
916
00:53:34,280 --> 00:53:36,120
I do that a lot.
917
00:53:36,120 --> 00:53:39,400
I leave the food out on the side
overnight
918
00:53:39,400 --> 00:53:43,240
because I think that's how you
defrost things.
919
00:53:43,240 --> 00:53:45,560
Things will defrost,
but as you see,
920
00:53:45,560 --> 00:53:46,840
it is not the way to do it.
921
00:53:48,200 --> 00:53:53,160
That's because the outside of the
meat reaches room temperature faster
than the inside,
922
00:53:53,160 --> 00:53:57,400
providing the perfect breeding
ground for microorganisms.
923
00:53:57,400 --> 00:54:01,680
So, let's just say that I have
defrosted my turkey mince,
924
00:54:01,680 --> 00:54:05,320
but then decided actually what I
quite fancy is going out for pizza,
925
00:54:05,320 --> 00:54:09,120
but I don't want to waste the meat.
Can I refreeze it?
926
00:54:09,120 --> 00:54:10,600
That would be a bad idea.
927
00:54:12,040 --> 00:54:14,400
We did that, actually, just to
check.
928
00:54:15,600 --> 00:54:20,640
And you see here. This sample has
been frozen and thawed twice.
929
00:54:20,640 --> 00:54:23,560
This sample has been frozen and
thawed three times.
930
00:54:23,560 --> 00:54:26,400
Oh, my goodness me.
931
00:54:26,400 --> 00:54:28,280
It's the whole universe in there.
932
00:54:29,640 --> 00:54:33,960
Every time you defrost food,
the bacteria multiply.
933
00:54:33,960 --> 00:54:38,160
If you refreeze it, you are also
freezing more bacteria.
934
00:54:38,160 --> 00:54:41,960
So if you do defrost something but
you don't fancy it...
935
00:54:41,960 --> 00:54:45,760
Cook it before use. Cook it and then
refreeze it. Yes, that's fine.
936
00:54:45,760 --> 00:54:49,640
And once it's been frozen, keep it
in the freezer about six months.
937
00:54:49,640 --> 00:54:51,360
I wouldn't want to go past six
months.
938
00:54:51,360 --> 00:54:53,600
After that, you start losing the
quality of the food as well.
939
00:54:56,120 --> 00:54:58,760
Today's been a real eye-opener for
me.
940
00:54:58,760 --> 00:55:01,840
From now on, I'm going to take a
good look at the defrosting
instructions
941
00:55:01,840 --> 00:55:07,040
on the packets, and make sure I keep
those tricky bacteria under control.
942
00:55:11,000 --> 00:55:13,480
Oh, crying out loud!
943
00:55:13,480 --> 00:55:17,200
My fish fingers are waiting for me
in the distribution area.
944
00:55:18,360 --> 00:55:23,040
To keep them frozen, they are stored
in a giant walk-in freezer.
945
00:55:23,040 --> 00:55:28,040
In charge of this chilly operation
is logistics manager Lee Kelly.
946
00:55:29,040 --> 00:55:31,760
Lee, are these my fish fingers?
947
00:55:31,760 --> 00:55:33,240
They are, Gregg. I'm sorry,
948
00:55:33,240 --> 00:55:35,720
this has to be the coldest place
I've ever been.
949
00:55:35,720 --> 00:55:37,760
Pretty chilly, minus 24 at the
minute.
950
00:55:37,760 --> 00:55:39,280
Mate, I really want to get out of
here.
951
00:55:39,280 --> 00:55:41,760
Can we get someone in here to take
these away so we can get out?
952
00:55:41,760 --> 00:55:44,600
Let's do it, yes. Can we?
Yes. Got any cocoa?
953
00:55:48,840 --> 00:55:53,400
The pallets are forklifted out of
the freezer and straight onto a
truck.
954
00:55:58,680 --> 00:56:01,640
Well, there it goes, solidly frozen.
955
00:56:01,640 --> 00:56:04,480
Is that a frozen truck as well?
It must be. It is, yes.
956
00:56:04,480 --> 00:56:07,840
It will be set at minus 24, same as
the cold store.
957
00:56:07,840 --> 00:56:09,680
So, how fast do you have to work?
958
00:56:09,680 --> 00:56:12,840
Pretty fast. The vehicle arrived
moments ago,
959
00:56:12,840 --> 00:56:16,360
so the lads have been unloading from
the cold stores directly onto the
vehicle.
960
00:56:16,360 --> 00:56:18,160
How many fish fingers on
there?
961
00:56:18,160 --> 00:56:23,000
I would say over 150,000 fingers,
actual fingers on there.
962
00:56:23,000 --> 00:56:26,400
Yeah, approximately 26 pallets.
150,000 fish fingers. Yeah.
963
00:56:26,400 --> 00:56:30,440
When are they likely to be on the
supermarket shelves?
964
00:56:30,440 --> 00:56:34,200
Depending on stock in store, they
could be there tomorrow.
965
00:56:34,200 --> 00:56:39,560
So my fish fingers could actually be
in somebody's freezer
966
00:56:39,560 --> 00:56:41,640
in the next day or so?
Yeah, yeah, possibly.
967
00:56:42,880 --> 00:56:47,040
The fish fingers will be transported
to distribution depots
968
00:56:47,040 --> 00:56:51,200
before heading to supermarket
shelves all over the country.
969
00:56:51,200 --> 00:56:54,080
They are particularly popular in
Cambridge and Cheltenham,
970
00:56:54,080 --> 00:56:57,280
but the biggest fans are in
Salisbury.
971
00:56:57,280 --> 00:57:03,760
Shall we let it get loaded and get
it on its way? Yeah, let's do it.
Cheers, mate.
972
00:57:06,000 --> 00:57:10,680
Just over eight hours ago, I saw cod
arriving at the cutting factory.
973
00:57:10,680 --> 00:57:14,480
Since then, it has passed through
the hands of more than 20 skilled
974
00:57:14,480 --> 00:57:18,840
workers, and now my fish fingers
are finally ready to go.
975
00:57:21,400 --> 00:57:25,480
I've realised there are more people
in this factory than there are
robots,
976
00:57:25,480 --> 00:57:28,880
and I like that. But what I really
like is that as soon as the cod is
977
00:57:28,880 --> 00:57:33,400
landed, it's put into blocks and
frozen, and it remains frozen,
978
00:57:33,400 --> 00:57:36,520
and only thaws out
when it's in our ovens.
979
00:57:36,520 --> 00:57:37,840
That is brilliant.
980
00:57:47,720 --> 00:57:49,800
Next time, we are in the
Netherlands,
981
00:57:49,800 --> 00:57:54,360
taking you inside one of Europe's
largest sauce factories.
982
00:57:54,360 --> 00:57:59,520
It makes three quarters of a million
bottles of mayonnaise every day.
983
00:57:59,520 --> 00:58:02,800
I come face-to-face with some
cracking technology.
984
00:58:02,800 --> 00:58:05,800
That may be the best machine I have
ever seen.
985
00:58:07,040 --> 00:58:09,840
And Cherry's getting hot under the
collar,
986
00:58:09,840 --> 00:58:11,800
making jars to put the mayo in.
987
00:58:11,800 --> 00:58:13,280
So fast!