Basque Country

The Basque coast has a fishing culture shaped by centuries of deep-sea whaling and cod fishing that took Basque fishermen as far as Newfoundland and Iceland before the cod stocks collapsed. That history of long-distance fishing and preservation built an expertise in seafood conservas that persists today. The Bay of Biscay yields the Cantabrian anchovy and bonito del norte (albacore tuna), both considered among the finest seafood in Spain. Santoña, Ondarroa, and Bermeo are the main anchovy towns. Producers including Ortiz, Don Bocarte, Arroyabe, Zallo, and Olasagasti have made Basque anchovies a reference product in the global tinned fish world. The region was also the first in Spain to receive MSC certification for anchovies, through the Lorea Gourmet label. Txangurro (spider crab) is the region's most celebrated shellfish conserva.