Mermaid Shoal is located northwest of Melville Island (Northern Territory, Australia) in the Timor Sea.
The waters to the north of this shoal provide the ideal habitat for Goldband snapper and is our brand name commonly used across many Australian restaurant menus.
Fresh Fish
Austral’s mission is to supply the highest-quality fresh fish to the Australian domestic market.
We’re continuously seeking ways to achieve this, and one of those is to use the Ike Jime method. This method sees the fish immediately placed into ice-cold sea water to chill them as quickly as possible. The fish are then removed from the icy water when at the correct temperature and stored in a refrigerated hold until they are ready for market.
Goldband Snapper
Goldband snapper (Pristipomoides typus) is a tropical bottom-dwelling predatory fish species caught by using baited fish traps in depths typically ranging between 60 to 100m.
GoodFish, the Australian Guide for Sustainable Seafood rates Goldband snapper from this fishery as a ‘Better Choice’ when choosing a sustainable fish for dinner
The Fishery
The Fishery covers a 29,000 km2 area known as the Timor Reef Fishery and Austral has five trapping vessels operating here, catching Goldband snapper and similar tropical reef fish.
The fishery is located in the remote pristine waters north-west of Darwin and is sustainably managed by the Northern Territory Government through a limited number of licenses. The Total Allowable Catch is assessed annually with strict catch limits in place for each species caught.
Environment First
After the fresh catch is chilled down, traditionally they are placed into 25kg fish tubs lined with a plastic liner bag. In 2023, we conducted substantial R&D into finding an environmentally friendly replacement for the plastic bags. The result which is used today are 100% fully bio-degradable bags used in all fish tubs.
This now ensures no plastic can enter the ocean in our operations or supply chain.