NEARLY 30 years after the Catholic Church's ban on eating meat on Fridays was lifted, some 55 per cent of the Irish population still buy fish only on that day. Women eat it more often than men, and older women more than most.
This presents a challenge to Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) which wants to put fish back on the menu every day.
The average fish eater is a middle class woman in her 50s living in a city. She eats it at home at least once a fortnight. The majority (over 80 per cent) prefer to spit out the bones in the privacy of their own homes. The fish being eaten is likely to be cod, salmon, whiting, plaice or mackerel, according to a new report which was prepared before the BSE scare affected beef consumption.
One of the problems facing BIM is to get people to realise there are more fish in the sea than the most popular fig. The report lists hake, sole, skate, turbot and shellfish as among the less popular varieties which could be enjoyed more regularly, especially in some cases if accompanied by a provocative sauce.
Reporting on public attitudes to fish, the report concedes: "One of the key problems is that most people can think of more fish species they dislike than ones they like".
"But it is reassured by the fact. that only one in 10 people hate fish in any shape or form. It concludes that the challenge facing BIM is to make more people more fish friendly and to convince younger people to see fish as an "interesting and trendy" choice of high protein food.
The report's suggestions for turning occasional and once a week fish-eaters into more frequent eaters make daunting reading.
They are:
. Reminding people to eat fish;
. Convincing people there are sufficient varieties to avoid boredom;
. Convincing people fresh fish is convenient;
. Focusing on fish cooked in interesting sauces.
They are also faced with the chicken challenge: "Chicken continues to be highly popular and may even be growing in popularity".
Even when the study was carried out, before the BSE/CJD scare, red meat and pork were slipping in the ratings but fish fingers were also dropping in favour of frozen fish fillets.
This and many more facts about fish are contained in a recently published report by BIM, Fish Consumption in Ireland: A study of behaviour and Attitudes, which has harpooned a whale of information about attitudes to fish and fish eating.