The rules governing the harvest

Two species of kelp are worked by the Breton seaweed fleet, each governed by its own set of rules.

The tali-moan (Laminaria digitata)

This is the main harvest for seaweed harvesters working from boats, and the scoubidou is the only gear allowed for this species.

• Season: from 15 April to 15 October, under regional rules.
• Days and hours: Monday to Friday, from sunrise to sunset. From 5.30 a.m. to 9 p.m. until 15 September, then from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Harvesting is forbidden on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays, including Whit Monday.
• Areas: at the start of the season, for three to five weeks, boats go out in rotation by geographical sector — Lanildut one day, the rest of the fleet the next.
• Landings: one per day only. Each vessel is allocated one or more areas and must carry a VMS beacon (vessel monitoring system) in working order and switched on.

The tali-penn (Laminaria hyperborea)

Worked on an experimental basis since 1994-1995 by certain vessels only, it is subject to special authorisations.

• Season: from 15 April to 31 December, under national rules, with the same days and hours as the tali-moan.
• Areas: four sectors are open — Molène, from Saint-Mathieu to the Aber-Ildut, from the Aber-Ildut to the Île Vierge, and from the Île Vierge to the bay of Goulven. Each is divided into five areas, subject to an annual rotation, with a harvest limit of 20% of the biomass.
• Landings: two per day at most. A Total Allowable Catch (TAC) is set for the fleet as a whole — 5,000 tonnes in 2000 — together with a quota per boat, for safety reasons. The VMS beacon is also compulsory.