Comments on: Ecosalon Recipes: Back Away from the Tuna, Shrimp and Salmon: 11 Sustainable, Healthy Seafood Choices

By: How to Cook Fish: Seafood Watch's New "Super Green" List with Serving Suggestions | EcoSalon | Conscious Culture and Fashion

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 01:18:44 +0000

[…] long ago, here at EcoSalon, I listed my own personal list of 11 sustainable seafood options. It’s interesting to see the differences between my list and Monterey […]

By: Callies Blog » Blog Archive » Mercury Levels in Fish

Callies Blog » Blog Archive » Mercury Levels in Fish — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 17:48:09 +0000

[…] http://www.ecosalon.com […]

By: Luanne Bradley

Luanne Bradley — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:31:13 +0000

You are right about the survey. I agree most people I know ( of course you and I run in such nice circles) are very careful about their choices, as they should be. I would like to be a vegetarian and will need help from my colleagues when the time comes. It has been a goal for too long. I guess I worry about the protein.

By: Vanessa

Vanessa — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 16:17:38 +0000

Thanks for reading and commenting everyone. Black cod is actually not cod, it’s sablefish. Yes, cod is declining in most areas–though I think there are some types off the Pacific coast that are not on the red list. And true, the sustainability of seafood is different in different places and sometimes the names are too! But since it’s a global market, I think the important things to ask are where it’s from and how it was caught and farmed. It is such a complicated subject. I learn more every day. And it changes every day!

Luanne, that survey is discouraging. I think that a lot of people want to buy sustainable fish. I’ve seen surveys that say so and a lot assume that if it’s on the menu or in the fish case it must be sustainable. A lot of people see it as the retailers responsibility, not theirs. Of course I think it’s everyone’s responsibility. It was unconscionable that Nobu continued to serve bluefin after being protested by Greenpeace.

By: Luanne Bradley

Luanne Bradley — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 23:08:38 +0000

Thanks, Vanessa, good information and tips. We eat a lot of sardines (the cat, too) and stay away from farmed fish as a rule. I also liked smoked salmon, but buy wild salmon much less frequently. It’s true, the UK’s taste for fish and chips could be helping to deplete the cod supply. Fish stocks are down all over the world with bluefin tuna now as endangered as the white rhino and even cod is in danger of overfishing.

A survey of more than 2,000 people found 78 per cent do not even try to buy fish from a sustainable source.

By: Caitlin

Caitlin — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 22:20:46 +0000

I understand that Scotland has fairly good procedures for farming organic salmon but I agree that sustainably caught wild salmon (preferably certified by the MSC) is a better choice, especially because of all the wild fish that go into feeding the salmon. IMO it does actually make sense not to certify wild fish as organic – organic certification is and should be about the farming practice.

It is fascinating that black cod is a sustainable choice. I’ve been avoiding cod because of all the publicity in the UK about cod being endangered. I guess it must be a different species of cod from different waters.

I guess that brings me to the point that sustainable seafood choices in one part of the world are not the same in another point of the world, both in terms of which species are overfished and in terms of mercury or PCB contamination. It’s really important to look up the guidelines for your own country.

By: Carla | Green and Chic

Carla | Green and Chic — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 19:31:41 +0000

Thanks for the heads up about what fish we should be eating. I try to stay away from farmed shellfish and fish, but think you for telling us WHY.