What is a Sustainable Fish?

There is actually no such thing as a sustainable fish. Or to be more precise, all and no fish are sustainable unless they’re farmed, and fish farming is a complicated issue in itself. Wild fish populations are self-sustaining, they breed, and all mankind can do is reduce their present numbers by fishing. All fish species are vulnerable to over-fishing, some more than others. All fish species will recover from over-fishing unless populations are reduced to the point where extinction is inevitable, or their environment is damaged. Some will recover faster than others. There is no fish species so plentiful that we can harvest as much as we like without any impact. In that sense, the sustainable fish is a myth. So, why is there so much talk about eating more sustainable fish?

What we really mean is fish that’s sourced under a sustainable regime. That doesn’t sound quite as catchy as ‘sustainable fish,’ does it? Try saying ‘sustainably fished fish.’ That’s no better. It’s understandable that people should use the term, sustainable fish, but they’re completely missing the point.

Picture credit - Morues fraîchement pêchées aux Îles-de-la-Madeleine en 2006 by Matthieu Godbout from the Wikimedia Commons and under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License

Should we be eating less fish? I don’t think we have to, and I certainly don’t want to. What’s required is a fishing industry that doesn’t over-exploit selective species like Cod and Haddock. Here in Europe, this is achieved via a system of quotas, but that causes problems for businesses that rely on fishing and selling fish. What’s required is a fishing industry that targets a broader range of fish species, spreading the load and not singling out our old favourites.

I’m no fishing expert, but I do understand the basics of business. It’s all very well asking the fishing industry to catch a broader range of fish, but that’s no use if there’s no demand for them all. That’s where we, the consumers, can help by buying and eating a wider variety of fish species. We don’t have to feel guilty about eating Cod and Haddock, for example. (All this nonsense about ‘guilt free’ fish recipes is quite annoying.) Nor should we feel virtuous about eating Coley or Pouting. The variety is what counts.

You’ll hear a lot of talk about how great the less popular types of fish taste but, to be honest, there’s a reason why they are less popular. In terms of taste, texture, firmness and colour, they don’t quite have the same appeal. They don’t fall far short, but they’re not a perfect match. The answer, once more, is variety. Over the past few months, I’ve been looking for recipes that create a real tasty treat from the less popular white fish like Pollock and Hake. I’ve published my ten favourite recipes on a Squidoo lens - White Fish Recipes. I hope you like the recipes.

UK Channel 4 website - Sustainable Fish
I found this site very useful. It's a spin off to The Big Fish Fight with Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and there are some good recipe links.