Marks & Spencer has come to the rescue of a unique Cornish conservation project through a donation of £12,000. The support will enable the National Lobster Hatchery in Padstow to continue producing thousands of juvenile lobsters and further develop its groundbreaking research into lobster culture.
Last year Marks & Spencer also donated £2,000 to the Hatchery which helped to pay for essential modifications to the broodstock holding facility. The new donation will be put towards the salary cost of the Hatchery’s Senior Technician and reflects Marks & Spencer’s ongoing commitment to support sustainable fishing practices.
Since opening at the start of the millennia the hatchery has released over 38,000 juvenile lobsters into the waters around Cornwall. This is an important contribution to the sustainability of the Cornish lobster fishery and helps to balance the needs of the fishery industry with the needs of conservation. The production of the juvenile lobsters is a time consuming process and many will require ongoing care as they remain in the hatchery for up to three months before they are released.
Dominic Boothroyd, General Manager, National Lobster Hatchery said "This is fantastic news for the Hatchery. The generous donation from Marks & Spencer will make a huge difference to us – we are a small charity and cannot survive without the support of corporations and the general public."
Andrew Mallison, Fish Specialist, Marks & Spencer said "We were pleased to be able to help Dominic and his team as we’ve been impressed by their work for many years. The project is truly unique and we know it’s making a real difference. If it wasn’t for the Hatchery, local lobster fishermen wouldn’t have enough stock to catch, visitors to Padstow would not get an insight into fishery conservation and our future generations might not get the chance to enjoy the tasty delights of real Cornish lobster."
-Ends-
Notes for editors:
- The National Lobster Hatchery is a charity dedicated to enhancing Cornwall’s lobster stocks through the release of juvenile lobsters.
- Local fishermen donate egg-carrying female lobsters to the hatchery, after the eggs hatch the lobster larvae are reared under artificial conditions until they metamorphose to juvenile lobsters, at which point they are released to suitable habitats.
- Around one in ten thousand lobster larvae are likely to survive to become juvenile lobsters in the wild, under hatchery conditions these survival rates are dramatically improved enabling young lobsters to be given a head-start protected from predators and starvation.
- The National Lobster Hatchery provides unique research, educational and conference facilities and houses a visitor centre where visitors can gain an insight into sustainability in fisheries, marine life and the work carried out at the hatchery.
- Marks & Spencer was recently named by Greenpeace as the best retailer in the UK for sustainable seafood sourcing for the second year running.
For media enquiries ring General Manager Dominic Boothroyd on: 01841 533877
For media enquiries relating to Marks & Spencer, please contact Rachael Cokayne at Staniforth on: 020 7573 7490.
Back to press releases index
Back to top