©Andy Murch/Elasmodiver.com/Marine Photobank
As our first menus appear this week I thought it would be an awesome idea to start a blog conversation about sustainable seafood and why we should care. Throughout the week I’ll be highlighting the four major reasons we should all be concerned about eating sustainable seafood:
- Overfishing
- Increased demand
- Bycatch
- Aquaculture
Why am I starting with bycatch when I listed it as #3 above? Mainly because most consumers relate best to the large charismatic megafauna species out there (i.e. killer whales, sea turtles, sharks and manatees to name a few) rather than the threatened but less attractive fish species (tuna, salmon, etc).
In addition, I also read this moving and very frightening essay by Andy Murch, winner of the Marine Photobucket’s An Ocean in Focus Conservation Photography Contest. The stats from his essay:
In 1 day of fishing:
- 1 entire boat load of shark and ray bycatch including:
• Four soupfin sharks (listed as globally vulnerable)• A handful of brown smoothhound sharks• Multiple rays still viable enough to survive if the fishermen could be convinced to release them
-
1 single Halibut (the intended catch)
-
The eventual payoff for the halibut would not even cover fuel for the 1 day of fishing
©Andy Murch/Elasmodiver.com/Marine Photobank
Why do you think people are more moved to action over the bycatch issue but not overfishing of fish populations?
-Meg
