Sea sausage: New Plymouth fishers create innovative bait made from crayfish

Jerome Chua, a Massey University student, with the sea sausage product he's helped develop.

By Gianina Schwanecke of RNZ

It is not only humans who consider cray delicious, it is also a favourite of rig (aka lemon fish). Now, a new crayfish bait type called the sea sausage has been developed to hook the fish.

Two New Plymouth fishermen teamed up with a Massey University student to invent the bait, which is made entirely of crayfish waste products supplied by the Fiordland Lobster Company.

Keith Mawson from Egmont Seafoods and fisher Rob Ansley of Ocean Pearl Fisheries were looking for a new bait to attract rig — also known as lemon or spotted dogfish — after switching from trawling to long line fishing to protect dolphins.

Rig is a valued product that makes for excellent fish and chips, both here and in Australia, Mawson said.

“Traditionally rig is caught via trawling or set net, but that form of fishing has had to move away from where the rig are found, to ensure the safety of dolphins in the area, including Maui dolphin.

“We needed to change to long line fishing; however, getting rig to take a hook isn’t easy.”

He said that meant the area’s entire commercial rig fishery was at risk.

While crayfish are a favourite of rig, getting bait made of the crustacean waste products — such as crayfish legs — to stay on a hook was too challenging.

It was then that they partnered with Massey University master’s student Jerome Chua, who helped them develop something more suitable.

Mawson said it took about eight months to perfect the sea sausage — the recipe for which remains secret for now — and make it suitable for putting on a hook.

“The trials that we’ve done thus far, the sausage baits we’re producing from the cray is outfishing the cray legs.”

Ansley, skipper and Ocean Pearl Fisheries managing director, agreed, adding there was potential to share the new sausage bait with other commercial fishers outside their existing trial.

The "sea sausage" as it's called, is made entirely of crayfish waste products supplied by the Fiordland Lobster Company.

He said it was “amazing” to see it in action, and nothing else seemed to work as reliably.

“The rig love the sausage bait,” he said.

“I had tried all sorts of ways to catch rig on hooks, including crab meat and cray legs.

“Initially, I was worried that the rig wouldn’t be attracted to the bait because it wouldn’t appeal to them visually, but as soon as we started and I saw the results, I thought ‘Nah, we’re away.’”

Massey University masters student Jerome Chua (left) and Ocean Pearl Fisheries skipper and managing director Rob Ansley.

The group had support from Callaghan Innovations, which helped fund the trials, along with Venture Taranaki and Massey University.

The Ministry for Primary Industries also supported the trials with a special permit and assisted in the sourcing of the raw materials.

Mawson said it helped make fishing more sustainable and had environmental benefits.

In addition to being dolphin friendly, it meant waste crayfish that could not be sold to humans and would otherwise end up in landfill found new use.

By keeping the rig population in check through fishing, Mawson said it would also help protect wild crayfish populations from overfishing by rig.

“I think this is a real win-win.”

- RNZ