Morecambe bay Cockles
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Early in the summer of 2003 the Food Standards Agency imposed temporary bans on a large number of the cockle beds in South Wales and the Thames estuary after tests seemed to indicate contamination from toxic algae. With the larger beds off limits wholesalers were forced to look to sources on other beaches to fulfil their orders. Word of the plentiful cockles in Morecambe spread fast and soon established and opportunistic suppliers alike descended onto the sands in a kind of seafood gold rush. Without any regulations or restrictions being imposed, the free-for-all that ensued left the local cocklers anxious and annoyed.

On the night of February 5th 2004 tension turned to tragedy when 30 Chinese cocklers were drowned while working on the sands. The loss of life had been predicted by many of the local cocklers I met a few months before, they felt that the gangs underestimated the dangers of the tides and worked without reasonable precautions.