Sustainable seafood

Global seafood consumption has quadrupled over the past 50 years and interest in environmentally conscious fish choices has grown. But which types of seafood are sustainable and how can you be certain? We take a look.

- MARTIN OLIVER

Which types of seafood are sustainable? This is a question that is preoccupying a growing number of consumers. Over the years, interest in environmentally conscious fish choices has grown, and the sector is now big business. Restaurants, including some in Australia and New Zealand, are now advertising themselves as avoiding serving endangered marine species in favour of better choices.

In terms of big-picture trends, global seafood consumption has quadrupled over the past 50 years. While part of this can be explained by population growth, the average person now eats nearly twice as much seafood as five decades ago.

In Australia, the Heart Foundation recommends two to three serves of fish per week, including oily fish such as salmon, sardines and pilchards. In affluent countries with more food choices, fish is acknowledged for being, on the whole, healthier than meat, and is an important part of the Mediterranean diet. This is reflected in shifting consumer behaviour.

The depressing conclusions of a 2006 Canadian study were that, following existing trends, by 2048 there would be no more wild fish left in the sea. Another 2020 study by academics from Germany, Canada and Australia looked at global fish stocks between 1950 and 2014, and found that, for 82 per cent of more than 1300 species studied, the numbers were in a state of depletion. The recommended solutions include “well-enforced and sizeable notake marine protected areas.”