Nederlands Français English Home Quality lobster Know-how Logistics Price quality Left Contact Quality When lobsters grow, they scale. Just before scaling, they are, as it were, in a bowl that is too small. The lobsters are then packed with meat and they reach their highest possible quality. After scaling it is just the other way around. Then they have too large a scale and they have to fill it up again. It also takes a certain time before the new scale has hardened. For the actual scaling process, the lobsters are therefore at their maximum quality level and are ready to face a very drastic life process. Those lobsters are usually caught in the early spring. However, when caught, the natural cycle is disrupted. As a result, the lobsters often refrain from scaling. The lobsters are stored in so-called pounds. These are basins closed off from the sea that experience water changes under the influence of ebb and flow. They become pounded lobstersmentioned. However, it is much better if the lobsters are stored at a very low temperature. In this way they can be stored for a longer period of time at basal metabolism (with minimal consumption of reserves) and thus the quality level is maintained. This can be stored in cooled water, in a shower system or in individual tubes. The last system in which the lobsters cannot disturb each other gives the best results. These tubed lobsters are the most expensive due to the above operation, but they have by far the best quality in periods of catch stop or during the summer months, when they scale at a higher water temperature. The fresh catch then has a very low quality level. Smaller lobsters scale several times a year, while the larger ones, depending on their size, sometimes skip several years. It is therefore easy to understand that larger lobsters take much longer to reach the pinnacle of their quality. In other words, the percentage of quality lobsters is much lower for the larger sizes. Much more will therefore have to be selected to obtain a reasonable quality. A word about mortality. Lobsters that are at their peak of strength, ie just before scaling, offer the most resistance. So they have the lowest mortality rate. However, for lobsters that are purchased with an already certain mortality on arrival, this death rate doubles at least one more time before they arrive at the customer. It is therefore better not to buy lobsters with mortality on arrival. The saying 'avarice deceives wisdom' certainly applies here. When you opt for good lobsters, you have a minimum of mortality. © 2017.