American Crayfish Are Running Amok in Europe
The Netherlands is facing an ecological challenge as invasive American crayfish populations multiply across the country's waterways. Authorities and experts are exploring whether encouraging the public to consume the invasive species could help mitigate the environmental impact.
Why it matters
This highlights the intersection of invasive species management and cultural dietary habits as a potential solution to ecological disruption.
What will it take for the Dutch to eat them?
Oli Scarff / AFP / Getty September 3, 2026, 9:51 AM ET Share Save Confronted with a seasoned, boiled, arguably delicious crayfish, some of the people of the Netherlands are not sure exactly what to do. “Do you suck the head out?” I heard from the table next to me earlier this summer, at Two Chefs, a restaurant in Amsterdam that hosts a monthly crayfish boil. Yes is the answer: The best way to eat a crayfish is to shell the tail, then slurp the flavored juices out of the head, and pick out the remaining meat with your hands.
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