When invited to a sustainable seafood dinner at one of the best restaurants in Boston, I had to say yes. As the founder of “Teach a Man to Fish” the sustainable seafood blog event recognized by the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch Program, it would be hard to say no. Plus, I love good food and sustainable seafood.

Between the invite and the dinner, “Sustainable” got dropped from the menu. Perhaps the "crazy way" that is the restaurant's namesake is to blame. Or, is this another fish tale about “the one that got away?”  It is significant to note, that according to the restaurant representative, some invited guests previewing the menu declined the invitation due to their concerns about the sustainability of the items being served. This underscores the growing interest in this topic and an opportunity to meet that need and take a leadership role in doing so. My sincere hope is that this article will help those efforts and support the genuine interest in sustainability.

Here is the menu in bold, and notes on sustainability of each [in brackets, with resources cited.]

[Oysters generally are a good choice. In some areas, wild harvest is still done, mostly they are farmed and this is one type of aquaculture that is not harmful.]

Scottish Salmon with grain mustard, celery leaves, grapefruit and hot chilies

[Farmed salmon creates a multitude of problems. Waste from a single salmon farm can equal that of a large city. This waste is generally released into the ocean environment directly. Another problem is sea lice which develop in close confinement of farms. The parasites spread to wild fish nearby. A third problem is the “fish in: fish out” ratio. A generally accepted rule of thumb is that it takes 3 lbs of fish to create 1 lb. of farmed salmon - some estimates are much higher.

As recently as January 5, 2009: Infectious Salmon Anemia (ISA) virus was found in a salmon farm in Shetland according to Scottish Government officials. According to the USDA “ISA can be transmitted and spread between and through wild and farmed fish populations and geographic areas from direct contact between infected and uninfected fish.”

For all these reasons and more, farmed salmon are on the Seafood Watch “Red” List to be avoided. Instead, choose wild Alaskan salmon.]

[Originally the menu listed Anchovies. Anchovies are a much less sustainable choice than Sardines. Sardines are a best choice.]

[Traceability is the key to true sustainability. Was this tuna long-line, hand-line caught? Atlantic? Bottarga is made from the roe of fish. Italy is its largest processor. Taking the roe or eggs of any species wipes out an entire generation of breeding population. This makes it questionable from a sustainability standpoint.

Again, traceability is the key. It is often very difficult to trace the bottarga processed in Italy back to the country of origin. Countries vary widely in their approaches to managing fish stocks.

Much of the world’s yellowfin tuna is overfished and/or is fished by methods which destroy other species also endangered.]

[Branzino is not widely studied or assessed by the scientific community yet. The country of origin for most Branzino served here is Greece, Spain, Croatia, or Italy. These are NOT countries with good records on sustainable fisheries management. Branzino is new to offshore aquaculture (Open Ocean Aquaculture).

As with salmon farming, fish in: fish out ratio; waste, disease and antibiotic use - all these things are very likely to be highly problematic.

Says Olivia Wu of SFGate: “Branzino, like salmon, is a carnivorous fish. In large aquaculture operations, small fish are caught and made into feed.

With salmon, experts estimate that it takes five pounds of fish to produce one pound of salmon, with a net loss of protein. Those in the sustainability movement have compared raising salmon to raising tiger meat for food. In other words, eating farmed salmon is eating about as high on the food chain as you can get...All of the same arguments for and against salmon farming can be made for other forms of saltwater farming..."

As far back as 2000, supplies of Branzino were noted to be diminishing.

Sea urchins can be a good choice or a poor choice depending on origins. For example urchins from Maine should be avoided as the stock is depleted to about 10% of a healthy stock. British Columbia and New Brunswick are much better choices.]

Wild shrimp from New England fisheries are known to be caught in ways that are particularly destructive to habitat. The problems with shrimp that are imported are even worse.

[So called “sea trout” is actually a name used to refer to many different fish. Here is another example of the importance of traceability. Without knowing which fishery the fish comes from, without knowing what fish is actually being served, it makes sense to avoid “sea trout.”  Much of the Tazmanian Sea trout is actually farmed steelhead from BC. The University of British Columbia studied the issue and notes the importance of traceability: “The project has determined that clear sourcing information for rainbow trout/steelhead products is necessary for sustainable product selection. Once sources are confirmed, it is recommended that UBC opt for rainbow trout/steelhead products from freshwater flow- through aquaculture systems and encourage its suppliers to adopt thorough effluent treatment methods. Rainbow trout and steelhead raised in marine or freshwater cages should not be purchased.” The University of British Columbia Sustainable Seafood Project Assessing sustainability of RAINBOW TROUT and STEELHEAD purchasing at UBC Executive Summary – May 2007

If you can trace your “sea trout” to a sustainable fishery, then enjoy.]

Were delicious and guilt free.

Final Notes on the dinner:
Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the evening was the Browne Trading Co representative who invited questions, then persisted in shell-game type of discussion. When asked about sustainability, answers were about “organic.” When asked about farming conditions of the salmon served, answers were about how bad Kona Kampachi practices are.

When questioned again about salmon farming and sustainabilty - CITES partnership was mentioned. CITES is The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species. (CITES) “certification” was offered as proof that the dinner was sustainable. When trade in endangered species is your baseline, rather than avoidance of endangered species, one could reasonably take issue with the definition.

Another guest at my table asked what percentage of their salmon was organically farmed, the answer was not shared publicly though she shared it with me. It was very, very small.

In the introduction to the evening, an earnest, and it seems authentically concerned, Chef Mike Pagliarini said “it’s all about the relationship with your purveyor.” He then noted, in all the time he’d worked at Radius and now Via Matta “this is the first time he was meeting the purveyor face to face.”

It’s more than the relationship with the purveyor. If you buy a used car, don’t you want to know how many hands the vehicle has passed through? Whether there were any accidents or repairs along the way?

If you’re buying seafood to consume, you want to be able to trust not just the last guy that touched it, you want to be able to see traceability back to the source. Pick the right purveyor or better yet, source from farmers and fishermen or demand traceability and better standards.

The food was all delicious and skillfully prepared. Maybe we long for the days when eating didn’t carry concerns for sustainability or safety. But those days are gone. We must do better than trust the supermarket that relied on the wholesaler of the peanut butter cookies, who relied on the manufacturer, who relied on the factory that had unclean conditions.

It’s not enough to host a dinner at one restaurant, then serve red list endangered fish at another, if you want to define yourself as sustainable.

Perhaps the one that got away here was the fish called authenticity.

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Great information and question
written by Penny , February 28, 2009

Thanks for the information on these items and the event. I'm disappointed in Browne Trading. We usually shop there when we're in Portland.

What is your most trusted resource on sustainable seafood?

Penny
written by Jacqueline , February 28, 2009

Thanks for stopping by and dropping a comment, getting the ball rolling...I think the key to finding trustworthy resources is to ask questions. The keys are: traceability, transparency. If a fishmonger gives you an "I don't know" or "Doesn't matter" kind of response, time to find a new one.

I have a list of resources here and there's also a really good step-by-step guide on the 2008 Teach a Man to Fish Round up here by Lia Huber. Look for the Flying Fish!

I hope this dinner is the start of a discussion we can all learn from and a sign that there's genuine interest here.

Please let me know if you find the links helpful!

Cheers,
Jacqueline

...
written by Linsey , February 28, 2009

Great post! I love how you dissected each course and showed that many of the choices were extremely poor, considering the topic of the evening. How rare is it that we can expect a guilt-free seafood evening and what a disappointment it must have been when the fish served turned out to be anything but sustainable.

I have just a few thoughts....

Reducing anonymity in the agricultural supply chain - and, and you say, increasing accountability - is a major step towards making responsible purchasing decisions and pushing the sustainable agenda onto more menus and supermarket shelves.

I don't really think there was ever a golden era of food safety or of sustainability. We've had food scares since time immemorial and didn't even have food safety requirements in place until the 1906 Food and Drugs Act. Surprisingly, in the last 10 years food purveyors and manufacturers have actually become more accountable - at least on paper - for their production through mandatory audits and HAACP. And that's where accountability ends. Lot numbers and paperwork.

But "sustainability" as a concept is something relatively new and something that still needs to be learned and shared. If we had a way to reward suppliers (particularly those trading in ever-shrinking stocks of fish) for adhering to strict standards of sustainability, perhaps there would be more incentive for them to follow those practices. Clearly a premium price is not enough. What else can be done?

What we, as individuals, need to exercise more and more when we go out and go shopping is mindfulness - we need to be mindful of what we eat, where we procure it, how it is produced, and if and how that production impacts the environment, health, and society. That's a lot of thinking - for some, too much. Perhaps questioning our food will get a few people to thumb their nose at Red Lobster's (largely Southeast Asian farmed) shrimpfest and instead opt for something fished locally and sustainably.

Linsey
written by Jacqueline , February 28, 2009

Thank you for the thoughtful comment. I agree - we all share the responsibility to make the changes. Did you read the Orion report on the Red Lobster shrimp sourcing? It's really sobering.

I do think we have to stand by our convictions and that means supporting restaurants when they take the risk of buying locally grown/fished/produced food. It may be a bit more expensive if the farmer is not getting higher yields per acre through chemical intervention. We can't claim to support "buying local" and "going green" then buy our bargain berries at CostCo in January.

Some of the invited guests took a stance and did not attend the dinner. That's another way to "vote" as it were. Perhaps in tougher economic times, there's added incentive for restaurants to work with customer preferences for clean sustainable food?

Ten people making incremental changes at the margins are better than one person being perfect in their lifestyle choices. We can talk to our purveyors, our chefs, our fishmongers and make some choices in the right direction. I'm trying to help provide good information and a supportive forum for discussion of tough issues.

Appreciate your comments!

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written by Obama Foodorama , February 28, 2009

Jacqueline--

A fantastic piece that perfectly illustrates all the issues with every aspect of sustainability, from ethics to sourcing to the casual misleading of both chefs and eaters. Thank goodness you have the patience, the knowledge and the moxie to point out all the bad things that happened on the way from the ocean to this "sustainable" dinner. As always, you continue to impress with your fantastic efforts in this arena, and we all owe you a big debt of gratitude.

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written by Obama Foodorama , February 28, 2009

You rock. You're my hero. You can eat lunch in my town any day. If everyone called "fishsticks" on this kind of misleading nonsense, we'd be a lot further along in the campaign to save the oceans. You continue to impress with your knowledge and your moxie.

Obama Foodorama
written by Jacqueline , February 28, 2009

Thank you for your support. I do think it's a challenge for chefs and hope that this is helpful to those who are wondering whether "trust your purveyor" is the best strategy.

Didja like the peanut reference? Sneaky huh? Any readers interested in food safety and related issues are invited to visit: Obama Foodorama the slightly wonkish, always sharp and fun blog by the Haphazard Gourmet Girls.

Cheers,
J

...
written by Linsey , February 28, 2009

I did see the report in the Orion. While I had quite a bit of previous info on Darden & their sourcing, never had I seen it illustrated so vividly. It is definitely a must read!

Consumers really need to do exactly what you recommend - talk to everyone (chefs, vendors, farmers, fishery manager, aquaculturists, fishmongers etc) who has some stake in our food supply, and then purchase good products when they are available. It is only when consumers demand - and buy- better product (eg sustainably farmed or fished products)that many vendors, used to doing it 'they way its always been done', get the message that there is a market for them. It is the rare supplier who isn't risk averse. And with costs generally higher, and selection generally lower for sustainably raised/caught seafood, there's a lot of risk.

Communication & education - followed by action - really do seem to be the key to making a difference. Thanks for getting the dialogue going!

...
written by RichardA , March 01, 2009

Quite a thought provoking post that cuts to the heart of sustainability issues, as well as general ethical considerations. Though some might not like what you had to say, I doubt they can refute the facts you state. The truth is not always pleasant yet it is still desired, warts and all.

Could anyone be more thorough?
written by Caron Golden , March 01, 2009

I agree, Jacqueline, that those who sell need to know what exactly they're selling. What amazes me is that they didn't think someone like you -- and likely several others -- who know their stuff and know to ask questions would be there to put them on the spot. The problem isn't that particular dinner, of course. It's that the consumer out there in the markets have no way of knowing what to do or what to ask -- or that there might be alternatives to what they find in the supermarket. And, this can be very confusing stuff. There's a lot of conflicting information out there. My friend Andrew Spurgin of PassionFish doesn't agree with a lot of the warnings, for instance, made by the government. But he's a lone voice and it's hard to get all this communicated. It's all about education! Thanks for doing such a great job and pulling back the curtain!

Caron

So much for sustainable
written by Elizabeth Edwardsen , March 01, 2009

I guess "sustainable" is easier said than done. Thanks for the interesting post!

J -- great review and commentary - thank you!
written by Boston Scuba Diver , March 01, 2009

I love your analysis and comments. I think we all need to demand high standards and support those who can meet them and avoid the others who can't or don't. The market speaks in powerful ways -- so don't be part of the market that accepts mediocrity.

Best writing I have seen in a long time.

- David

RichardA, Caron, Elizabeth and Diver
written by Jacqueline , March 01, 2009

Richard - Thank you. I'm hopeful it will get people talking, my goal is to start that conversation, warts and all and to provide people with some tools and resources.

Caron - Yes, transparency is key. I didn't really want to put anyone on the spot, more to pull back the curtin. I take the good intentions of this chef or that seriously, I'm here to help and provide a full picture, at least as full as I can. I'm learning too, and things shift as the ocean's health and species health changes. We're all better off if we're in it to help each other. It would have been easier for me not to go, but it's not in my nature to avoid something - even something difficult - if I can shed some light.

Elizabeth - Thanks for finding me here. You've been a pal. Glad to give you something to think about!

Boston Scuba Diver - you know when I was a girl I watched Jacques Cousteau and vowed to dive so I could explore what he revealed to us. I did when I was old enough to do it. Magic,isn't it? If more people could see it the conservation message would be easier to get across, I think, don't you?

Everyone: Thank you all for the thoughtful comments and taking the time to get through the squiggy spam filter - I'm working on it!

Also, please click on the Teach a Man to Fish links for a step by step guide to how to have the conversation with your fishmonger, or for wallet cards, or a video you can watch with your kids. It's all in the resource guide!

Thanks to your info....
written by Penny , March 01, 2009

I now have the Seafood Watch application on my iPhone. At the store or in a restaurant, I can check the latest information from the program.

http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx

Excellent program, we know but the little iPhone app is also first rate.

Thanks for the resources.

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written by adele , March 01, 2009

It may not be pretty, but sometimes, the truth has to be said. Kudos to you.

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written by Carolyn Jung , March 01, 2009

This is a case where those preparing and sourcing the dinner need to not only "walk the talk,'' but in this case, "fish the talk.'' Let's hope they do better the next time they organize an event like this.

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written by Pam , March 01, 2009

As someone who is still just learning about the concepts of sustainability, etc, it's sobering to realize that what is being offered and promoted as such is often not. Words are just words - it's the actions that make a difference. Thanks for pointing this out, because it will definitely make me keep my eyes open just a little wider.

ZAP!
written by Casson , March 02, 2009

Preach on. Nicely done.

Looking Beyond the Label
written by Carrie Oliver , March 02, 2009

Jacqueline, great post (thanks to @podchef for retweeting it!). I agree that transparancy is key and think Caron nails it when she notes how confusing it is for folks to sort through various labels and arguments pro & con. Peeling back the onion one layer at a time - i.e. piquing interest, arming folks with a few key questions to ask and then enabling us to dig a deeper when we're ready - this seems to help and your article does this very effectively.

With regard to farmed salmon, I have to admit to being confused. I've heard some pretty compelling arguments that one of the Scottish sources - Loch Dohr (sp?) - was different, that their farming practices were reasonably sustainable. Is this not the case?

Reading Harold McGee's book recently, I was reminded how seasonal fish is. Is there a source that lists which species are in season and when? Is "wild caught" shorthand for "in season." Would this help me make a more informed choice at the counter?

...
written by Lia Huber , March 02, 2009

Awesome post, Jackie. Really, really well done. I've had similarly shocking--and disheartening--experiences where people are touting sustainability, but then the meaning of it falls away at the first scratch of the surface.

I have to comment on Carrie's question above about Loch Duart salmon (my family happens to be MacLeans of Duart, so I perked up when I first saw farmed salmon coming from there). Like some salmon farms in Canada, the Loch Duart operation is purportedly doing a good job at what they do. Some salmon farms are even organic, in that they feed the fish organic feed. The issue is, as Jackie mentioned above, that salmon as a species just isn't a great choice for farming because of the "input-output" numbers. It takes a minimum of five pounds of fish to create one pound of farmed salmon (unless you're looking at processed corn feed . . . which gets into a whole other issue--corn? fish? hmmm.)

Herbivorous and omnivorous fish like tilapia and trout are better choices because they require much less fish feed to begin with.

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written by Lia Huber , March 02, 2009

Did it take my comment?

Penny, Adele, Carolyn, Pam, Casson, Carrie, Lia
written by Jacqueline , March 03, 2009

Penny: Thanks for the reminder about the iPhone app. I like that they break it down into regions, too. Don't forget my resource guide also has links to a few global guides. And, there's also Fishphone.
Adele: Thanks the comment and support!
Carolyn: That's my hope. After all, I got married in their other restaurant and they're working with the Aquarium here. I really want them doing better than trusting this purveyor.
Casson: Hope it wasn't too preachy? And hope that you're holding a fruity cocktail in the sun as wrote this!

Carrie: You raise good points. First, re: Loch Duart: while they are an example some use for improved farming conditions there are still problems with the model itself. My personal opinion is that it's best to stay with Wild Alaskan Salmon. With top of the food chain feeders, you are still depleting the food chain and dealing with lots of waste. There are also reports of wholesale shooting of seals who naturally gravitate toward penned salmon. Fish in:fish out ratio; huge waste and pest problems (see Jan 09 report of pest in Shetland farm); impact on food chain, all add up to persuade me to avoid farmed altogether.
Regarding Seasonality - I think the best bet is to develop a rapport with your fishmonger. If they are using responsibly harvested fish, I would assume that the seasonality issue handles itself?

Lia: Thanks for the input - sorry about the comments feature. I'm working with the folks behind the scenes to remedy the flakiness. It seems only some commenters receive the message that their comment is in moderation. Sorry!

Ah, I only wish
written by Carrie Oliver , March 03, 2009

Jackie, Thank you for the advice on salmon, this is very helpful. I really wish I had a fishmonger with whom to talk. There is one fish market within 20 miles of my home but they have no clue what they're selling (or so they pretend). Very frustrating to live in a major metro and have so little choice. I'm willing to support better practices in an effort to ultimately support best practices. But hard to do with zero transparency.

Carrie
written by Jacqueline , March 03, 2009

That's tough when there's little competition. You might try my friend Lia's approach. Lia is founder of the Nourish Network and publishes the Swirling Notions blog.

I'm excerpting her entry here from the Teach a Man to Fish round up.

Rather than submit a recipe, Lia went above and beyond, so I initiated a Flying Fish Award in her honor!

Here are Lia Huber's "Five Steps to Better Fish"

Step 1) I’ll ask to speak with whomever is in charge of purchasing and ask whether the store has a policy on purchasing sustainable seafood, pointing out—gently, politely—that I’ve noticed that some of the fish they have on offer are harmful choices for our oceans.

Step 2) I’m going to pull out my Seafood Watch Pocket Guide and discuss a couple of the fish they’re selling that fall under the red column (like the Ss-1ones I mentioned above).

Step 3) Since I don’t want to just point out negatives, I’ll come equipped with Seafood Watch’s chart of alternative recommendations so I can make some suggestions on sustainable substitutions.

Step 4) If all goes well with steps one through three, I’ll ask if I can bring in some more Pocket Guides to keep on the counter for customers to take. I’ll also ask if they’d like me to bring by some more information for their staff, and give them info on where to go for training support, presentations and materials.

Step 5) Finally, I’ll ask for their support and commitment, including a timeline for follow-up.

~ ~ ~

You know it is so impressive and a little scary, but why should it be? We're giving the fishmonger the information they need to serve their customers better. They should welcome the dialogue. I'd be leary of shopping with them if they got defensive or didn't seem to know or care.

Lia recently tested nine recipes in one day, so maybe she just needed a bigger challenge.

Congratulations to Lia on being our inaugural Flying Fish Award Winner!

...
written by Tiffany Hilman , March 04, 2009

Great article, Jacqueline. Thank you!

I wanted to back you up on the farmed salmon issue, and chime in with some info on Loch Duart's salmon farms. Their operations are not much different than the highly unsustainable industrial standard for open net-pen salmon farming -- Alaskan wild salmon is still the best choice.

A few disturbing facts... Loch Duart likes to advertise that they don't use antibiotics, but they fail to mention that they do use chemicals to treat for parasitic sea lice. The pesticide that they use (SLICE) is a known toxin to fish, birds, mammals and aquatic invertebrates. You already said it, but it's worth mentioning again -- marine mammals like seals and sea lions are getting shot (or drowning in the nets) when they're attracted to the farms. Escapes of the farmed salmon into the environment is bad news for already struggling wild Atlantic salmon stocks; they compete for food and habitat and can weaken the gene pool. And their farm waste is still flowing freely into the marine ecosystem.

But none of these environmental impacts are limited to Scottish farms -- farmed salmon from any country is firmly on the 'red list.'

And I wholeheartedly second the motion for folks to ask their fishmonger (and their restaurant server) about their options. The more info we have, the easier it is to recognize and reward the environmentally responsible fishermen and farmers.

Thanks again!
Tiffany Hilman
Wild Salmon Supporters: www.salmonsupporters.com

Thank you
written by Sharon , March 06, 2009

Jackie, thank you for your thoughtful and educational analysis of the menu choices. I really appreciate your efforts in getting everyone fired up about the real issues behind what's presented to us on menus and behind the counters at the supermarket.

Where's the emoticon for thumbs way up?

Tiffany, Sharon
written by Jacqueline , March 06, 2009

Tiffany: Thanks for that information. I can't believe treating the water is good for the ecosystem near the farms. I think this is why closed container aquaculture may be the only type that's workable. I really want chefs to be creative and introduce diners to new types of sustainable fish rather than rely on the "give em what they ask for" M.O. Our most exciting culinary innovations would never have happened if the great chefs relied on that.

Sharon:
Thank you for your kind words. I hope Chefs like Mike Pagliarini at Via Matta do get the support they need to make changes where they work. When the customers ask for it and support it, so should the restaurants. Or at least give it a real try.
Thanks,
J

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