Sadly, it's not that easy to fish sustainably. I always have a hard time figuring out which is the "right" kind of fish to buy. Farm-Raised, Wild Caught? I've read articles saying each is the best. It's hard to find "organic" fish, and I'm not sure that any fish is certified organic (I can see why it would be hard, especially the wild caught." So when I came across this article in my ZooTales from the Akron Zoo, I was really excited! FINALLY, some directions!
It's called the Seafood Watch Program, and it's linked with the Monterey Bay Aquarium. This site had a WEALTH of information, including a widget that I added to the right column of my blog. You can type in a kind of fish/seafood and it will tell you the safetly level. Their recommendations are:
Best Choices: Seafood in this category is abundant, well-managed and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.
Good Alternatives: These items are an option, but there are concerns with how they're caught or farmed-or with the health of their habitat due to other human impacts.
Avoid: Take a pass on these items for now. They are caught or farmed in ways that harm other marine life or the environment.
The Super Green List: A list of wild and farmed seafood that’s healthy for people and the oceans.
The list I found in the Akron Zoo's newsletter was:
Best Choices: Tilapia (US Farmed), Salmon (Alaskan, wild caught) Tuna (skipjack, yellowfin, US troll or pole caught), Scallops (farmed) Perch (Lake Erie) Crab (dungness, stone)
Good Alternatives: Tilapia (Central and South American farmed), Salmon (CA, OR, WA, wild caught) Tuna (Bigeye, Tongol Yellowfin Troll or pole caught), scallops (wild caught) Perch (Yellow, Lake Huron and Ontario) Crab (Blue, king (US) snow)
Avoid: Tilapia (Asian Farmed) Salmon (farmed, including Atlantic) Tuna (Albacore, Bigeye, Skipjack, Tongol, Yellowfin(except troll or pole caught) Bluefin) Crab (King, imported).
I was surpised to see the same kinds of fish coming up, it CLEARLY makes a difference where and how the fish are caught. I HIGHLY recommend checking out the Monterey Bay Aquarium's site. There is just so much info on there, plus an APP that's the same as my widget, so if you're at a restaurant, perusing the menu, you have a tool at your fingertips to help you choose the best option for seafood.
My one complaint is that Caskey's Bass was not on the list...I guess it's a good thing he threw it back!
What a cool site! For those of us who are not computer (or widget) savvy, I'm going to use a pencil and paper and a telephone to call the restaurant and ask where their salmon comes from.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Melissa!
But at least it's a cordless phone!
ReplyDelete