It ain’t easy being a ‘green’ reporter. The simple act of going out to lunch presents ethical dilemmas. Can we eat fish today, and be assured that they will still be around for our kids and grandkids?
That was the topic of my CNNMoney column today, about Seafood Choices Alliance, a trade association that is promoting sustainable seafood. Here’s how it begins.
Remember The Marvellettes’ song, “Too Many Fish in the Sea?” Well, there aren’t.
Off New England, a centuries-old tradition of cod fishing is pretty much over. Blue fin tuna are severely overfished, according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch.
Worse – a study published last fall in the journal, Science, warned of a “global collapse” of all wild seafood by mid-century if fishing continues at its current pace.
No wonder I couldn’t decide what to order when pondering the menu at M&S Grill, a seafood restaurant in downtown Washington, D.C.
You can read the rest here. By the way, while researching this story, I came across a lively and thougtful blog about the ethics of food called The Ethicurean (Chew the Right Thing). Worth a look.
P.S. The fishing industry trade association responded to this column when it was published. See comment below. Any thoughts?
Marc,
As you state in your story, enjoying seafood should always be a “guilt-free†endeavor, especially since fish is heart healthy, low in calories and fat and high in nutrient-rich protein. Yet this story regarding seafood sustainability makes a few assumptions about the state of our fisheries based on individual opinions, not necessarily on available government data.
By actively working with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries Service and the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the seafood community is committed to ensuring our wild capture fisheries system is managed properly for future generations. In fact, over 98 percent of the top 10 seafood varieties that Americans eat come from sources worldwide that fisheries scientists report as fully sustainable.
According to NOAA statistics, more than 80 percent of fish stocks are sustainable and will provide seafood now and for future generations. FAO scientists report a steady trend in global wild capture; for the past quarter of a century, wild fisheries worldwide have provided between 85 and 100 million metric tons of seafood annually. Fish stocks naturally fluctuate in population, and these fisheries scientists actively manage stocks and rebuild fisheries with a low sustainable population.
To meet the gap between what wild capture can provide sustainably and the growing demand for seafood, aquaculture is filling that need. NFI members share the belief that for a viable domestic aquaculture industry to thrive, farming practices must be carried out in a sustainable manner. Aquaculture is, and will continue to be a safe, sound and vital method of producing a variety of fresh- and salt-water seafood in the interest of a healthy human diet. As the farmed seafood sector grows, groups such as the Global Aquaculture Alliance will ensure it becomes ever more efficient, economical and sustainable in every sense of the word.
Americans are enjoying more than 16 pounds of seafood per person annually, proving that we’re all hearing the right message: eating fish is essential to a healthy, balanced diet. As a natural resource upon which American communities depend, sustainable fisheries management will enable all families to enjoy the benefits of fish and seafood now and in the future.
Sincerely,
John Connelly
President
National Fisheries Institute
http://www.AboutSeafood.com
It’s people like that last commenter who make eating sustainably so difficult… they’re using a very “interesting” definition of “sustainable” if “over 98 percent of the top 10 seafood varieties that Americans eat come from sources worldwide that fisheries scientists report as fully sustainable.”
My wife and I have been struggling with the issue of finding truly sustainable fish to eat for several months. Thanks for the pointers.
To people like Tom Konrad & wife: finding sustainable fish doesn’t have to be a struggle. I keep my freezer full of wild Alaskan salmon (ate it for breakfast AND lunch today). As Mr. Gunther notes in his article, Alaskan management biologists put the health of the resource foremost, which is why Alaskan fish stocks remain abundant.
Conversations like this make me see the real need industry has for an
organization like Seafood Choices Alliance, where all voices come together to find solutions. As the director of the Alliance, I hear all sides of the “sustainable seafood” argument every day. For example, the National Fisheries Institute contends that 98% of fisheries are sustainable.
Government and conservation scientists around the world suggest it’s
something much less than that. And scientist Boris Worm’s report states
that 90% of the world’s fisheries are over-exploited and that there could
be no more wild fish by the year 2048. There’s a lot of daylight between
those perspectives.
The purpose of the Alliance is to bring these leaders together – from
industry, academia, government, the conservation community and everywhere in between. And by doing so, we provide an opportunity to compare notes, share perspectives and make decisions that align us all more closely towards our common goal of a lasting supply of seafood for future generations of seafood lovers to enjoy. Just last week, we hosted the annual Seafood Summit in Jacksonville, Florida, to discuss these very
issues. We were happy to have Mr. Connelly and hundreds of other business leaders at the table, discussing the complex challenges and possible solutions to a problem that “didn’t just happen yesterday,” as Harry Frisch, the founder of Beaver Street Fisheries, put it.
Whose data is correct? That’s not for the Seafood Choices Alliance to say.
What we do know is that if we all continue the dialogue, we can move down the path together towards a world where eating seafood is truly guilt free.
Mike Boots
Director, Seafood Choices Alliance
Marc, as usual, you are the voice of the people. I read your “A Future Without Fish?” article and said, “Oh no. Now what do I eat?” My New Year’s resolution this year included a commitmemt to eat fish rather than meat. My decision was based on health and heart, the emotional kind. I decided that I should only eat what I could kill. If I could not kill a cow, then I should not buy it prepackaged in a store (even Whole Foods) and call it Filet Mignon. That might sound easy for some, but it is harder than you think for this farmers’ granddaughter! I grew up believing that meat was good for you and eating it was the natural order of things. I do garden and ocassionally surf cast with my hubby. Thus I decided plants and fish were fair game, no pun intended. In January, I resolved, “No more hypocrisy. Eat what you kill,” as they say on Wall Street, but for me quite literally. I was going along just fine for a few great weeks feeling that I finally paid homage to the animal kingdom, until I saw your article. It through me a curve ball. Something I had not thought much about before – the huge oceans of fish were endangered? Thanks to you, I will make it my business to make sure I eat only sustainably fished seafood. Fortunately, I just returned from Seattle with wild Alaskan salmon for my freezer, so that gives me a few more days to do my homework.