Hilux 4x4 Forum

These big packs of Sardines we buy for bait, on the back it says "Not for human consumption"

These Sardines look beautiful, they are clean, fresh and not broken.

Is there anybody with knowledge of the commercial fishing industry who can tell me why one should not eat it?

We once braaid it when we went cray fishing and it was very nice.

Can one make a judgement from the enthusiasm of the replies that there is no reason why not to eat them and that most fishermen on this forum do it?

Pieter, I think that sardines are too small to gut, so all the internals are still there. Tinned sardines are smaller and are prepped and preserved immediately, whereas those intended for bait are frozen without too much care and may even have been thawed / refrozen in the distribution process. Being fish and high in protein I think they could putrify quite easily.

OK, thanx Andy.

Pieter I have had the opportunity to see the inner workings of the processing plants at four different fish factories.

For human consumption the temperatures are maintained throughout the process, the gutting, and what gets (re)used where is all finely controlled. Then the autoclaves where it gets "cooked". Staff wearing hats, etc etc .... and off course Department that does inspections to ensure the process remains up to standard.


I have NOT been in a factory where they make the "not for human" consumption. But I can guess that many of the high standard wont apply, thus saving substantial money. and as Andy said - the gutting may well be different story ...

If we fish we do not wear gloves and hats anyway.
If you fish on a boat and for some reason the fish was laying in the sun too long you can smell it easily and you can see it on the skin.

These sardines looks absolutely perfect and that is why I wondered.

Maybe they put the warning on the box because all the precautions were not taken and they put it there just in case something is wrong with the fish and somebody eat it.

"Maybe they put the warning on the box because all the precautions were not taken and they put it there just in case something is wrong with the fish and somebody eat it".

Agree with this Piet, they are covering themselves as these can maybe also remain frozen for longer than would be the requirement for human consumption...
Nine times out of ten is that it would be fine to eat if cooked long enough. My wife nearly died from shellfish which was taken off the rocks, eventhough it was properly cooked. Proberly one out of forty which was not quite right, as she was the only one that was affected. Dr. told her that she was lucky to survive...

If eaten by humans......their profits will go the same way as the Grayston bridge

Pieter also bear in mind that each fishing company aims at a different international market, and each of these markets have STRICT rules.


We once joked about the American market ... you may as well send a piece of dry leather, they must remove all the fat and all the skin and and and and.....



As soon as you want to sell "for human consumption" the rules become absurd .... think of the snoek we buy next to the road - this breaks every single rule in the book, yet we seem to survive this ....


Duncan docks in Cape Town is one of the few places that may legally store fish for sushi consumption - at minus 60 degrees C !!! I gaurantee you 90% of the sushi you eat comes from re-sellers that DONT have these -90C facilities ..... again, we seem to survive this ....




Now if you want see deepest darkest Africa at work, take a drive through Kayamandi in Stellenbosch .... prepping food on the street corners, etc etc ..... yet 2km further the legal tax paying shop owner cant compete as he has to adhere to first world standards .....

no man Pieter... it's already difficult to get hold for good quality sards for bait not you want to eat that too :-)
Kob season is here and the manne already catching double digit speciment on strandfontein coast

Pieter... use the sardines to catch something lekker like a nice Kob or Steenbras... then you can eat the lekker caught fish!

Only fish should eat the bait man!

Me is not so hot on the fishing. If I am on a boat everybody around me catches fish and me nothing, is easier to catch a box of sardines.

I need the oil of the sardines in my diet and the stuff in the tins do not appeal to me. I rather take my chances with eating bait than eating the stuff in the tins.

pieter next time i'm in langebaan.. if going is good i'll drop off a stump or two.... you'll never look at a sardine again.

[quote="pietpetoors"]Me is not so hot on the fishing. If I am on a boat everybody around me catches fish and me nothing, is easier to catch a box of sardines.

Pieter moet nie sleg voel nie iemand moet die lock aas gooi

Is fishing in Laangebaan so bad, the guys are eating there bait

Ja Neil... sad to say but fishing in Langebaan become bad... about 14 yrs ago when i started fishing, langebaan was the go to place when we had dry run. YOu were gaurenteed a nibble just to get the spirits up. These days you can actually go a few trips blanking.


the problem is the "sakkies vol" crew... limit is 10 per person 25cm... jeesh 25cm fish you fillet and bake you lucky to end up with one mouthful. Then they go home with 20 - 30 a man... some fish even under 25cm.

alas, they all hide under the veil of subsistence fishing. Guess what, they way you go on, tomorrow there will be no more left to subsistence from
and then you get the idiot who says i drove so far i must take something home for the pan. ... if you doing it purely to put food on the table then take the R400 - R500 worth of fuel cost and go buy some fish by PnP.

I have wrote numerous times to DAFF / MCM to change limits, especially for langebaan to 35cm 5/day. Alas... they as normally government only wakes up when it's too late.

Shaakir... totally agree with you... on our monthly fishing expeditions I often spot guys with undersized ones. Try challenging that chap on it and you're taking your life into your own hands!

Must also agree with you on the blank outings these days. We fish from Kogelbaai all the way up to Velddrif(conditions dependent) and there's definitely a big decline in coastal fish numbers! I've had days this year where conditions are superb and not one single bite.

Think I'm going to switch to fresh water soon... people don't fish those species as much cause they don't taste that great!

just to highlight the decline we were speaking of...

http://www.rockandsurf.co.za/index.php? ... 3#msg94753