About Chocolate & Zucchini
Chocolate & Zucchini is a blog written by Clotilde Dusoulier, a 24 25 26 27 2829-year-old Parisian woman who lives in Montmartre and shares herpassion for all things food-related -- thoughts, recipes, musings,cookbook acquisitions, quirky ingredients, nifty tools, restaurantexperiences, ideas, and inspirations.
The Sustainable Seafood Dilemma
I blame it all on my nephew.
Around the time that he was born, earlier this year, something clicked and I decided to take the whole sustainable seafoodthing seriously: if he and his unborn cousins are to enjoy a long lifefull of lobster tails and skate wings, it is up to me to make informedand responsible choices now.
I had heard of the depletion of the oceans before, but Idon't think I had quite realized how dire the situation is: fishpopulations the world over are threatened by overfishing,overconsumption, pollution, and fishing techniques that wreak havoc inlocal ecosystems. If we don't change our ways fast, major fish speciesmay become extinct as early as 2050.
Like all environmental problems, this is an abysmally complexone, with multitudinous causes, implications, side effects, andcollateral damages. And if you factor in other, equally pressingconcerns, such as levels of mercury, PCB, and other contaminants, aswell as the need to favor locally sourced ingredients, it all becomesrather overwhelming, befuddling, discouraging, check all that apply.Not everyone aspires to become an expert in marine matters, and noteveryone has the time or inclination to decode what the experts aresaying.
We just want to eat fish and be merry.
It is perhaps tempting then to sit on one's hands and say, well, I'm just the one consumer,I can't change the world, and that slab of red tuna on the fish stallor on the menu is already out of the water anyway, so I might as welleat it.
But no; it is best to let that slab of red tuna sit there, uneaten,for it is very much a chicken-or-egg (or rather, a fish-or-roe) matter.As much as we would want them to, restaurants and fish markets aren'tin the business of saving the planet; they're in the business of making their customers happy.
And if what makes you happy is to feel sure that the fish you buy has been fished or farmed sustainably-- that is to say, in a way that ensures that the fish population willbe maintained or increased, and that the ecosystem it belongs to isprotected -- then it will become financially profitable for fishvendors and restaurateurs to care.
So, what to do, what to do?
First of all, you can get a pocket seafood guidethat indicates the species you can eat, and those that you shouldavoid; the list varies depending on the region of the world where youlive, and where the fish you can buy comes from. These guidelines arelikely to change over time as seafood stocks evolve, so it's a goodidea to get the freshest edition available.
The WWF links to seafood guides for European countries, the Monteray Bay Aquarium offers several for the United States, and this site lists a few more.
I've printed a copy of the French version for my purse, to use at the restaurant and at the poissonnerie, and I keep another one on the fridge, to use as a cheat sheet when I'm considering recipes.
(In passing, one feature that would be handy to find in such guides is a substitution chartthat would say, "If your recipe calls for [species to avoid], considerusing [sustainable alternative] instead." The Environmental DefenseFund offers this seafood selector, but I've yet to see something similar for the French cook.)
The pocket guide is a good start but, as a black-and-white view of a situation that has many shades of grey, it is not the magic shieldone could hope for. Fish comes in so many varieties and under so manydifferent names that the list cannot possibly be exhaustive, andimprecise labelling -- when it is not intentional mislabelling -- is a frequent hurdle on the responsible eater's path.
The only option then is to ask questions, whether at the fish counter or at the restaurant: what kind of fish is it, where does it come from, how was it farmed/caught?
Admittedly, this is not the easiest thing to do -- especially in France, where vendors and waiters are known to get defensive, and where well-intentioned curiosity is occasionally met with a take-it-or-leave-it-mademoiselleattitude. The trick is to adopt just the right tone so as not to soundhigh-and-mighty, yet make it clear how important it is to you.
One can only hope that, if enough consumers show concern, fish vendors and restaurant owners will be just as inquisitive with their suppliers -- if only to get us to shut up.
Lastly, an important thing we can all do is spread the word.A small portion of the public is even aware that there is a problem inthe first place and, as eager cooks, as passionate eaters, we are in aposition to alert and inform our friends, family, coworkers, and, if wehappen to run a food blog*, our readers. I'm not suggesting the soapboxapproach -- has that ever worked for anyone? -- but rather gentlenudges and offhand remarks, at the restaurant and at the shop, in thekitchen and at the table.
What about you? How do you deal with the sustainable seafooddilemma? Do you have resources, strategies, or thoughts to share on howto make better choices?
Recommended reading and resources:
- A series of posts written by an Australian marine ecologist.
- Lia's post on sourcing sustainable seafood.
- A Chef's Guide to Sourcing Sustainable Seafood, available for download from Chefs Collaborative.
- An online compilation of international seafood guides.
- The Monteray Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch.
- The Oceans Today on the Marine Stewardship Council's website.
- The Marine Conservation Society's FishOnline website.
- The Environmental Defense Fund's seafood selector.
* If you have a food blog, consider participating in the upcoming edition of Teach a Man to Fish this October. Teach a Man to Fish is a food blogging event that promotes sustainable seafood; don't miss the wrap-up of last year's edition.
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