| Geoduck
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Description: The geoduck is the largest burrowing clam
in the world that is also called the elephant trunk clam in Chinese. As a member
of the class of mollusks called bivalve, a geoduck has a large meaty siphon or
neck extending from its large oval shaped shell. In British Columbia its shell
can grow to an average of 195 mm (7 inches) and weigh an average of 1 kg (2.2
lbs).
The siphon of the geoduck
has a sweet, fresh sea flavour and crunchy texture.
Product
Forms: Geoducks are most popular live, but the siphon meat is also
available chilled or flash-frozen and then vacuum-packed. Dried body meat is
available occasionally.
Availability: The geoduck fishery is conducted
throughout the year and accordingly all product forms are available throughout
the year.
Buying Tips: When buying live geoducks, look for ones
that have fresh, plump and firm looking siphons. Although light beige-coloured
siphons are preferred by many customers, the taste and texture of the meat
inside is the same regardless of the exterior siphon colour.
Storing
Tips: Live geoducks that are wrapped in a damp cloth will keep in the
coldest part of a refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. If the geoduck will be used on
the same day that it is obtained, remove the body and siphon from the shell and
discard the dark, egg-sized oval stomach.
Preparation/Usage: To prepare, first remove the body and
siphon from the shell and discard the stomach by inserting a small knife in
between the shell and the body of the geoduck around the base of the siphon and
cutting along the edge of the shell to separate the shell from the body. Once
the stomach is trimmed off and discarded, the siphon and crescent-shaped strip
of body meat will remain.
Then, to remove the tough
skin covering the siphon and body meat, place the clam under hot running water
until the skin begins to bubble and loosen. When ready, you should be able to
peel off the skin easily to expose the edible creamy-smooth flesh
underneath.
To further prepare for use,
cut the siphon off from the body meat and split it lengthwise in half across the
two apertures showing the thicker end. Cut each piece of the siphon into paper
thin slices on a sharp bias or as desired. After trimming off the spongy parts
from the body meat, this part can either be sliced and served, or cut up and
used as an ingredient in, for example, a chowder.
The geoduck’s sweet flavour
and crunchy texture reveal themselves best when eaten either raw (in sushi or
sashimi) or when very quickly cooked (in a stir fry or hot pot). Geoduck
toughens very quickly when cooked so a quick plunge into boiling water or sauce
is all that is needed for best results. Dried body meat is sometimes used in the
preparation of Chinese soup tonics.
Area of Origin and
Range of Availability: Geoducks (Panopea abrupta) are only found in
commercial volumes along the Pacific coast from Washington state, all through
British Columbia, and as far as south east Alaska from the intertidal zone to
depths of 100 metres (328 feet).
Similar, but smaller,
species of panopea exist in Japan, New Zealand and
Argentina.
Harvest Volume: After peaking in 1987, geoduck landings
for the last 5 years have remained stable at about 2,000 tonnes per
year.
Harvest Method: Geoducks are individually harvested one
at a time by divers using a directed water jet called a “stinger?which loosens
the substrate around the clams and allows them to be lifted out of the
sand.
Geoduck stocks are managed
based on a conservative target exploitation rate of 1%
annually.
Processing Method: Immediately after harvest and until
delivery to a federally registered shellfish establishment, all commercial
geoducks are packed in “cages?with a maximum weight (while empty) of 2.3 kg (5
lbs) per cage. They are then transferred by water and land to registered buyers
in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia where they are carefully packaged and
shipped live to markets where they are placed in holding tanks for viewing and
sale. Contrary to common belief, geoducks are not held in water during
transport. If kept cool and moist, they can survive for days out of
water.
Markets: The majority of geoducks are exported to Hong
Kong and China while a small amount is exported to the United Stated or sold in
British Columbia.
Sustainability: A number of measures have been
implemented to sustain the geoduck fishery including: licence limitation;
individual vessel quotas; a three-year rotational fishery in which only parts of
the coast are fished in any one year but at three times the annual rate;
industry funded monitoring program including port validation of all landings,
ongrounds observer coverage, market sample and biological sample collection and
processing, and survey data collection; a conservative quota system allowing a
total allowable catch of 1% of the estimated biomass; protected areas, and; low
impact and limited bicatch harvest methods.
Historical and
Anecdotal Information: The name geoduck comes from the Nisqually Indian
“gwe-duk?meaning
“dig-deep?
Commercially harvested in
British Columbia since 1976, the geoduck fishery now ranks first in landed value
among the invertebrate fisheries in British Columbia.
This species is also one of
the longest living animals in the world as it can live more than 100 years. The
age of a geoduck is determined by the number of rings on its shell. From 1993 to
2000, Underwater Harvesters Association researchers collected 12,800 geoducks
along the British Columbian coast. This research uncovered the oldest geoduck
aged to date in the world ?a 168 year old geoduck from Tasu Sound on the Queen
Charlotte Islands in British Columbia.
| NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION
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| Per 3.5 oz/100 grams of raw edible
portion
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| Calories
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85
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| Total fat
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2.0 g
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| Protein
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15.5 g
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| Cholesterol
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0.0
mg
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| Source: Sidwell, Virginia D., Chemical and Nutritional
Composition of Finfishes, Whales, Crustaceans, Mollusks, and their Products;
NOAA Technical Memorandum, 1981.
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