Six finalists learn how fish gets from sea to kitchens

The lucky finalists are Colin Nicholson, Langass Lodge Hotel, The Milton Restaurant, Robbie Penman, Adam Smith College, Fraser Green, The Seafood Restaurant Gavin Fitzpatrick, Hilton, and Claire Gardner, Hilton. They enjoyed a seafood dinner with representatives from the fishing industry, including John Buchan, Ocean Venture, well-known from the BBC Trawlermen series, Mark Addison of the Benarkle, and Mark Buchan of the Quantus, one of the youngest skippers in the pelagic fleet. Their trip included a £18 million whitefish/shellfish trawler Allegiance and a £65 million Quantus which enabled them to see how fish are caught, handled and stored at sea to maintain quality. Meanwhile tours of Select Shellfish, a local shellfish processing company specialising in Scottish langoustines, and GMR Seafood Ltd, which processes and smokes whitefish, herring and mackerel, completed the chefs' look at the supply chain. Their trip was topped off with a fish and chip lunch at the Dolphin café in Peterhead harbour, which uses fish fresh from the market. Fisheries Secretary Richard Lochhead said: "I asked Seafood Scotland to launch a young seafood chef competition to recognise and encourage the skill, talent and innovation which we have in abundance as a nation. We will publish the successful candidates' delicious recipes on a dedicated website, providing consumers with a one stop source of advice on buying and cooking seafood." The finalists fought off stiff competition to reach the final and are now preparing for the 'cook off', which takes place on July 3 at the Edinburgh School of Food & Wine. Top prize is a specially commissioned trophy, a week's work experience with seafood chef Roy Brett, and the opportunity to cook the winning dishes at a Ministerial dinner. The chefs will be cooking a variety of species including hake, megrim, herring, crab, squid and razor clams. The competition is part of a wider package of measures sponsored by the Scottish Government, that are designed to encourage greater consumption of Scottish seafood.