The Super 8 of the Sea
Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Super Green List
If you’re a card-carrying member of the sustainable seafood buying public, then you know that red means ‘no,” yellow means ‘think twice’ and green means ‘dive in.’
Today at a press conference in Los Angeles, marine conservation organization (and seafood card issuer) Monterey Bay Aquarium will announce a new category to its ranking of seafood: super green.
In addition to high marks for their well-managed and environmentally responsible fisheries, “super green” species are (relatively) low in contaminants and rich in heart-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids.
In collaboration with Environmental Defense Fund and the Harvard School of Public Health, the aquarium has identified eight such species: farmed rainbow trout, oysters and mussels and wild Alaskan salmon, Pacific sardines, albacore tuna (troll or pole-caught), pink shrimp (Oregon) and spot prawns (British Columbia).
A second string of species — sustainably fished, low in contaminants but lower in Omega-3s — has also been identified: farmed Arctic char, bay scallops and crayfish and wild Dungeness crab (Pacific Northwest and California), longline-caught Alaskan cod and U.S. Atlantic longfin squid.
The aquarium, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, also is releasing a state-of-seafood report and will host a handful of celebrity chefs (Alton Brown among them) poised to announce a “Save Our Seafood” campaign and pledge to keep “red” fish off their menus.
I’ll file updates as news develops.
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This is great information to have on hand, Kim. Thanks for posting (and maybe you’ll give us a recipe for each!).
Susan, I’ve got a recipe for some of these species, but I just remembered something: My friend Jacqueline Church, a Boston-based food writer, is in the midst of her 3rd Annual Teach a Man to Fish extravaganza, an online recipe contest using only sustainable seafood. Details here:
http://jacquelinechurch.com/pig-tales-a-fish-friends/1822-3rd-annual-teach-a-man-to-fish-blog-event-begins-now
Kim,
Thanks for the great info. I’m a huge fan of the Seafood Watch cards, and its great to hear that there is a deeper distinction being made here.