One of the largest halibut caught off the coast of Scotland was recently bought by a local fishmonger for almost $1,400. The halibut, which was 8 feet long and 4 feet wide, weighed about 287 pounds (130 kg) when it was caught off the Outer Hebrides, an island chain off the cost of Scotland.
Scottish trawler Aquarius, which usually fishes for cod and haddock, caught the halibut, according to SWNS. Armstrong’s Fishmongers in Edinburgh, Scotland, bought the 287-pound halibut for about $1,379 (£1,000), SWNS reported. According to the news agency, the fish will be cut into almost 100 portions.
Gary Huckle, the manager of Armstrong’s Fishmongers, told SWNS he hasn’t seen anything like this halibut before. “I’ve been a fishmonger for 35 years and I have never seen a halibut this size,” Huckle told SWNS. “I’ve done big fish before but this is off the scale. It’s the biggest Scottish fish I have ever seen.”Despite Huckle’s shock, Armstrong’s has bought other large halibut before, according to SWNS.
In 2017, the fishmonger bought a 229-pound (104 kg) halibut, the news agency reported. Huckle told SWNS that the fish can’t be filleted because of its “big middle bone,” but his team will cut the fish into “big halibut loins.” “We are in the process of cutting it up now but I think we will get 75 kg (165 pounds) out of that, you do get a bit of weight loss with halibut,” Huckle said. “…It’s absolutely massive,” he added.
According to SWNS, the largest halibut ever caught in Scottish waters weighed more than 295 pounds and was caught last summer.