It’s called “tomato sushi” and it’s a dead ringer for bluefin tuna. Chef James Corwell creates it by skinning tomatoes, removing the seeds, and then vacuum sealing them in sturdy plastic bags. After that, the tomato is cooked in hot water for about an hour using a technique called sous-vide. The process provides a similar texture to that of bluefin tuna and when paired with nori, ginger, soy sauce, and wasabi it tastes like a sushi roll, according to a story on NPR.

It’s an overall effort to reduce the impact on our oceans, and especially on at-risk species like bluefin tuna, the largest species of tuna, which can live up to 40 years in the wild. Their populations have declined severely, largely driven by demand for the fish at high-end sushi markets. All three species of bluefin tuna: Northern (or Atlantic) bluefin tuna, Southern bluefin tuna, and Pacific bluefin tuna have suffered in massive overfishing. Since bluefin tuna are late to mature and slow-growing, they’re especially vulnerable.

Other chefs and food manufacturers have also experimented with vegan sushi and faux fish like Sophie’s Kitchen, which makes vegan calamari, scallops, and fish fillets. They also sell a product called VeganToona, a canned faux fish made from pea protein, potato starch, seaweed powder, and olive oil, according to NPR.

But it’s a question of whether the demand is there to support a blossoming industry. Today 3.2 percent of Americans or 7.3 million people follow a vegetarian-based diet, according to a Vegetarian Times study. Additionally, .5 percent of Americans or 1 million people choose a vegan diet. These are growing, but still relatively small numbers.

Veggie burgers, tofu, and other meat substitutes have gotten better over the years, but there’s still work to be done.

“So much of sushi is visual, and using vegetables gives us the opportunity to use so many beautiful colors,” says Casson Trenor from Shizen Vegan Sushi Bar and Izakaya, reported on NPR. “We have some dishes that feature the bright color of tuna meat. Are we trying to mimic maguro? No. Are we trying to put purple and red into the menu? Yes.”

What do you think? Would you add faux fish or vegan sushi to your diet?

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The post Endangered Species Like Bluefin Tuna Could Find Protection in the Growing ‘Faux Fish’ Market appeared first on EcoSalon.

The nation’s newest national park lives under water.

In June 2014, President Obama announced he was going to create a huge national water park. No, no. Not a water park with slides, “clean” pools and ill-fitting bathing suits, but a marine water park.

Grist reports that the approval of that new national park came in late September 2014. Pacific Remote Islands National Marine Monument, the new marine park, will span 470,000 square miles of ocean. The location of the park is around a couple of “remote Pacific islands.” Obama made this political move on his own, without congressional approval, reports The Washington Post. The president was able to act by using the 1906 Antiquities Act, which is meant to protect environmental assets.

While Obama originally wanted to expand this area to about 800,000 square feet, and encompass the entire area of surrounding the islands, he scaled down the plan to limit any economic impact on U.S. fishing interests, reports the Post. However, the park is still impressive and it is twice the size of Texas, reports Grist.

The stretch of ocean will remain pristine. No deep-sea mining will be allowed. No commercial fishing will be permitted, either.

This “commercial fishing free zone” will help the Pacific bluefin tuna population. According to Grist, bluefin tuna are struggling. The fish are incredibly popular to eat, so the lack of strong international fishing agreements allow the bluefin to be over-fished. This park will serve as a “safe zone” for the tuna. The bluefin is known to flock to this area of the ocean during warmer seasons.

While this national park will significantly help preserve the bluefin tuna population, it will also allow the area’s surrounding ecosystems, which contain underwater mountains where “ancient corals, manta rays, sharks, sea turtles,” and other types of marine life, call home, to thrive.

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The post Say Hello to American’s Newest National Park (You’ll Need a Snorkel) appeared first on EcoSalon.

The U.S. is putting new rules on commercial fishing of bluefin tuna in the Gulf of Mexico and parts of the Western Atlantic known to be breeding grounds. Giant bluefin tuna over 81 inches long will be protected under a new 750 page National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration amendment in an effort to rebuild the population.

“NOAA Fisheries deserves great praise for significantly increasing protections for bluefin while allowing fishing for yellowfin tuna and swordfish to continue,” said Lee Crockett, director of U.S. ocean conservation for The Pew Charitable Trusts. “This historic action will help western Atlantic bluefin tuna rebuild to healthy levels.”

The amendment deals directly with surface longlines. The longlines average 30 miles long and use hundreds of baited hooks left unattended for 18 hours at a time. As a result, countless marine species get caught and die including bluefin tuna, hammerhead sharks, and leatherback sea turtles. It’s a sad practice that wastes  445,338 pounds of bluefin tuna, more than before a U.S. ban on targeting the massive species went into effect in 1982.

These new guidelines seek to change all that by restricting the use of surface longline fishing in certain parts of the Gulf of Mexico and Cape Hatteras. It also establishes a new annual limit on incidental catch and says that the use of longlines must be monitored 100 percent of the time.

According to NOAA:

Under these proposed measures, fishermen will have a strong incentive to avoid catching bluefin tuna incidentally when pursuing swordfish and other Atlantic tunas, since bluefin tuna catch (landings and dead discards) are proposed to be counted against individual longline vessels. Reaching the bluefin quota could result in prohibition of further longline fishing.

Western bluefin tuna weigh upwards of 550 pounds and can reach more than 6 feet in length. They are also particularly valuable on the commercial market which makes them subject to unreported and illegal fishing. But NOAA has yet to list them as threatened or endangered under the Endangered Species Act.

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