Consumers are being warned that canned mackerel purchased in UK supermarkets may not contain mackerel at all.
Princes, one of Britain’s biggest tinned fish brands, has been revealed to be replacing genuine North Atlantic mackerel with Chilean jack mackerel, a completely separate species, in products stocked by Sainsbury’s, Lidl and Tesco.
The swap means that the majority of mackerel tins on UK supermarket shelves no longer contain any of the oily fish that health-conscious consumers believe they are purchasing.
Chilean jack mackerel belongs to an entirely distinct species family from true mackerel, despite the shared name suggesting otherwise.
Canned mackerel in British supermarkets contains no UK mackerel
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GETTY
Princes jack mackerel delivers only half the omega-3 fatty acids and roughly a third of the vitamin B12 found in standard mackerel, making it a far less nutrient-rich option.
However, it does offer a modest advantage in protein content, with four additional grams per 100g serving.
Sue Davies, head of food policy at Which?, said: “Tinned fish is an affordable and convenient way for households to add important nutrients to their diets and eat the recommended two portions of fish a week, one of which should be oily.
“It’s a real concern when manufacturers quietly downgrade everyday staples like these as shoppers can end up paying the same price for a product that delivers significantly less nutritional value.”
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GETTYThe labelling shift followed a change in regulations by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), which until last year required this species to be sold under the names “jack”, “horse mackerel” or “scad” rather than simply “jack mackerel”.
Shortly after Princes introduced its product under the jack mackerel label, DEFRA updated its rules to permit the terminology.
The timing coincides with a boom in demand for tinned oily fish, with sales climbing by almost a fifth as consumers seek out affordable, high-protein options.
Those who have tried the substitute have not been impressed, however. Critics have described Chilean jack mackerel as “dry”, “bitter” and “metallic” in flavour.
Wild fish contained a greater, or similar, concentration of nutrients as the farmed salmon fillets | PA
Despite the wholesale cost of Chilean jack mackerel sitting at roughly a third of the price of genuine Atlantic mackerel, retailers have continued to charge shoppers near-identical amounts for both products on their shelves.
The pricing disparity has drawn criticism from industry figures who see consumers as the losers in the arrangement.
Stewart Harper, former managing director of North Atlantic Fishing Company, told the Financial Times: “It is a great pity that we will eat imported fish from a long way away instead of locally caught fish.