Sardinemaxxing: The Tinned Fish Economy Eats Itself
CBC reports that tinned fish has graduated from pantry afterthought to lifestyle category, complete with a verb, *sardinemaxxing*, and a skincare crossover that nobody asked for but several Toronto influencers insisted upon.
The pitch is familiar. A humble food eaten by grandparents for a hundred years is rediscovered by people in linen jumpsuits, photographed on a marble board with a single radish, and resold at four times the price. The tin is artisanal. The fish is sustainable. The colour palette is muted. The label is in a language nobody at the brunch speaks.
Devotees claim sardines do everything: brain health, omega-3s, glowing skin, a more interesting personality. One Vancouver wellness account now recommends mashing anchovies onto the under-eye area, which is the sort of advice that used to get you removed from a family dinner.
The twist arrives at the grocery store, where the actual grandparents who have been buying these tins for decades now find them behind a small wooden sign reading *curated coastal protein*, priced at nine dollars. A retired fisherman in Lunenburg was asked for comment and said he eats them on toast with butter, which the reporter wrote down as if it were a recipe.
The skincare line launches in autumn. The serum smells exactly like you think it does. Early reviews note that it works, in the sense that no one will stand close enough to confirm whether your skin has improved.