Oceans worldwide are experience dramatic declines in fish populations. As the number of people on Earth grows, so does the demand for seafood. But, if we continue to consume commercially caught fish without regard for how our choices affect global fisheries, we may actually eat several species into extinction in the foreseeable future.
Your Choice Matters
You don't have to completely give up healthy, delicious fish and seafood in order to help stop the crisis of overfishing. When you make wise choices with you shopping dollars, you will begin to change the market. Seafood suppliers, like any other food producers, respond to the demand of the consumer, so the more people who climb aboard the effort to change, the better.
Knowing Which Fish to Buy
It's impossible to look at fish fillets in the grocery store and know which are sustainably caught--unless you have a little background information. First, it's important to know that:
- Some fish are harvested irresponsibly, using methods that deplete the fish species and harm others in the process.
- Farmed fish are rarely a better option, contrary to their producers' ad campaigns. Farming fish is frequently harmful to the natural environment, introducing pollutants and creating fish stocks that tend to be weak and diseased.
- The good news is that there are fish that you can buy at grocery stores restaurants with a clear conscience. According to Dr. John McCosker and the California Academy of Sciences, "Many of these are fast-growing species that are holding their own in the wild. Others are considered good choices because they are successfully farmed with minimal impact on surrounding ecosystems. There are also many delicious choices in this category that are still harvested from the wild, but in fisheries that are managed in a way that allows sufficient natural reproduction."
Best Fish and Seafood Choices
These are considered the safest options for both human health and the environment. However, I recommend investigating the country of origin and farming practices before consuming farmed species.
Anchovies
Bluefish, Atlantic
Catfish, farmed
Cod, Pacific
Crayfish
Halibut, Alaskan
Mackerel
Mahi-mahi
Mussels, farmed
Oysters, farmed
Pollock, Pacific*
Prawns, California Spotted
Salmon, wild Alaskan and Californian
Sardines
Scallops, farmed
Shrimp, Atlantic Northern Pink
Squid (Calamari)
Striped Bass, farmed
Sturgeon, farmed
Tilapia , farmed
Trout, farmed
Tuna, Pacific Albacore (Tombo Tuna)
Tuna, Yellowfin (Ahi)
*It was formerly thought that the Pollock fishery competed with declining Steller sea lions, but new evidence shows that this is not true.
Worst Fish and Seafood Choices
Beluga Sturgeon (Beluga caviar)
Chilean Seabass (Patagonian Toothfish)
Clams, dredged
Crab, Alaskan King and Snow
Groupers
Herring*
Lingcod
Lobster, Northern (clawed, American, Maine) and Spiny
Monkfish
Orange Roughy (Slimehead)
Oysters, dredged
Rockfish (Pacific Red Snapper, Rock Cod)
Salmon, Atlantic
Scallops dredged
Sharks (shark cartilage, shark fin)
Shrimp and prawns, farmed
Shrimp and prawns, trawled
Snappers, tropical (huachinango)
Sole, Petrale, English, and Dover
Sturgeon, wild
Swordfish, Atlantic
Swordfish, Pacific
Tuna, Bluefin (Maguro)
*Declining herring numbers combined with heavy fishing pressure may be contributing to declining Steller sea lion populations.
Special Considerations
If you're pregnant or a mom with young children, it's important to make informed choices about seafood to reduce your family's exposure to mercury. Here are a few ways to shop smarter:
- Get the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch Guide, which provides at-a-glance info on which fish is okay to eat and which should be avoided. They guide also flags types of seafood that contain levels of mercury or PCBs that pose a health risk.
- Download the Monterey Bay Aquarium's iPhone app.
- Download the Sierra Club's "Safe Sushi" app for iPhone and Android to see the mercury levels in the fish you eat.
- Download the Blue Ocean Institute's iPhone app called FishPhone.