3 Modernisation
The changing fleet and the experiments
Emdroadur al lestraz ha taolioù-arnod
In the 1960s, several trials sought to make the harvest more profitable. In 1963, the Tali became the first boat to suck up seaweed cut by a diver, followed in 1966 by the Jean-Rémy. But these attempts failed: the seaweed blocked the pipes, the currents hampered the divers, and the cost was high.
In 1967, the fisheries committee and the manufacturers had an experimental boat built, the Jean Ogor, fitted with a mechanical scoubidou and with Yves Colin as technical adviser.
From the 1970s onwards, Christian Quéré (Hydro Armor) invented a hydraulic crane to drive the scoubidou, making the harvest considerably easier. Such efficiency, however, worried the manufacturers about the future of the resource.
Three years of scientific study off Porspoder, carried out with Yves Colin, proved that pulling the seaweed free does no harm to the kelp. The tool was then adopted on a large scale: by 1977, 75 seaweed boats were equipped with it.