Moules de bouchot de la Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel

Live farmed bouchot mussels from the foreshore of the Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel, composed primarily of Mytilus edulis, with less than 5 % Mytilus galloprovincialis or galloprovincialis-edulis hybrids. The specification requires a smooth, dark shell, yellow to orange flesh free from crabs and sand, an average length of at least 4 cm, and a minimum flesh rate of 120 on the Lawrence and Scott index.

About this designation

Registered as a PDO on 30 March 2006 under file number PDO-FR-0547 (eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013866), Moules de bouchot de la Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel was the first sea product to receive PDO protection in the European Union. The breeding area covers the foreshore of the Baie du Mont-Saint-Michel south of the line between the church tower of Carolles and the peak of the mountain range up to the western boundary between the departments of Ille-et-Vilaine and Manche. Packaging and processing are confined to the districts of Cancale, Cherrueix, Le Vivier-sur-Mer, Mont-Dol, Hirel, Saint-Benoît-des-Ondes, and Saint-Méloir-des-Ondes. Mussels are farmed on vertical stakes aligned and dug into the foreshore. Mussel beds must be fertilised using strings of spat by 31 October each year. Farming covers at least 11 consecutive months, including at least 8 months on the mussel bed, and may not exceed 24 months. Packaging must be completed within 18 hours of washing and sieving, in units with a maximum capacity of 15 kg. Compliance is overseen by the Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité (I.N.A.O.) and the Direction générale de la concurrence, de la consommation et de la répression des fraudes (D.G.C.C.R.F.). Each packaging unit must bear the protected designation name in characters at least as large as any other characters on the label, together with the words 'protected designation of origin' and the Community PDO logo.

Source: The register document this entry was written from · retrieved August 26, 2026

Distinctive facts

• Registered as a PDO on 30 March 2006 under file number PDO-FR-0547; eAmbrosia identifier EUGI00000013866.
• The specification requires a minimum flesh rate of 120 on the Lawrence and Scott index and an average shell length of at least 4 cm.
• Farming must last at least 11 consecutive months, including at least 8 months on the mussel bed, and may not exceed 24 months.
• The Bay of Mont-Saint-Michel has the largest tidal ranges of any French coast, and Mytilus edulis cannot reproduce there naturally.

Tasting notes

Mont-Saint-Michel bay rope-grown mussel AOP (bouchot = wooden-pole cultivation method, traditional). Plump golden-orange flesh, balanced briny-sweet flavor, characteristic delicate texture from cold-water growth, less iodic than open-sea mussels.

HoReCa use

**Moules-frites** classic Atlantic French restaurant service, moules marinière, in fish stews and soupe de poisson; pairs with Muscadet, Sauvignon Blanc.

Packaging

• mesh-bag-fresh-1kg
• mesh-bag-fresh-2kg
• mesh-bag-fresh-5kg
• vacuum-pack-cooked-500g

Seasonality