Has anyone ever wondered where the fish they eat comes from? According to a report by Global Trade, fish accounts for 2% of the world’s food consumption, yet 93% of it comes from overexploited sources.
Now, the rising global demand for sustainability in consumption has led the industry to consider where their sources and the implications of their actions. Known as the ‘Blue Revolution’, this movement seeks to upend usual over-exploitative practices regarding seafood consumption and replace them with sustainable ones.
Toward Sustainable Seas: The Blue Revolution
The idea behind the Blue Revolution is simple. It talks about and involves sustainable practices in seafood production and consumption. As awareness grows, so does the need for solutions and products that can help develop a more eco-friendly future for the industry.
Today, more than half of all seafood being consumed in the U.S. is farm-raised — a practice known as aquaculture. The industry has made strides throughout the last few decades, from increasingly sustainable farming practices to technological advancements that can help feed a growing population.
What is Sustainable Seafood
Sustainable seafood involves fish, seaweed, and shellfish in a way that allows farmers to feed the global population while helping the various species’ populations thrive. This means practices that enable different species to multiply in flourishing surroundings while providing for the world’s consumption needs.
According to NOAA Fisheries, the fisheries in the United States farmed and wild-caught fish, seaweed, and shellfish are all increasingly becoming protected under sustainable practice laws. The seafood sourced from those who follow these policies comes under sustainable aquatic food.
Farmed Fishing and Sustainability: The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC)
The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) is a global nonprofit organization that creates and enforces strict standards for farming seafood. It provides a sea green ASC certification to farmed products that maintain these standards. The aim is to help consumers make informed and sustainable choices while buying seafood. Grocers, chefs, and seafood farmers are working together to give the movement the push it needs to take over the nation.
“About 2/3 of our seafood offerings are raised on farms, which reflects both growing supply and demand,” said Abe Ng, CEO of the Sushi Maki restaurant chain and market stations. “There’s a much broader customer understanding and appreciation of aquaculture than, say, ten years ago. However, not all farmed seafood is equal in terms of quality, environmental sustainability, and social responsibility.”
The standards ensure integrity and quality while the products travel from farm to store. ASC ensures that each product it labels is assessed independently by its personnel. ASC designed the entire practice to be environmentally and socially responsible.
“Whether your seafood is wild-caught or farmed, what matters to today’s shoppers is that it’s high-quality, flavorful, and was fished or farmed in a responsible way that’s good for you and the planet,” said Roger O’Brien, president and CEO of the Santa Monica Seafood market and cafe. “Farm-raised seafood that’s been responsibly certified by the ASC delivers on the assurance that the seafood you’re buying is what it claims to be, which is a key commitment we make to our customers.”
However, ASC is not the only one making strides in the sustainable seafood movement.
The Rise of Seafood Startups
Overexploitation of seafood and climate change have decimated huge aquatic creature populations. Farm-raised seafood sounds like a sustainable alternative, but overcrowding and disease are still major concerns.
Even though cell-based seafood is already a thing, it may take decades before it heats the market. Unfortunately, vegan alternatives are different in taste, texture, and nutrition, which means they aren’t as palatable or widespread as one may have hoped they would be.
This gap in demand for sustainable seafood has given rise to startups that aim to improve the situation. According to Crunchbase data, seafood-related startups funded in the past couple of years have collectively raised nearly $3 billion to date. This includes startups like efishery — an ag-tech company that offers feeding solutions for fish and shrimp farming; Prime Roots — a company that makes mycelium-based meat products; and Wildtype, a cellular agriculture company.
Mission Kitchen’s Symposium
According to Global Trade, on May 23rd this year, Mission Kitchen hosted a day-long symposium. The goal was to have industry leaders and innovators at a single table to discuss solutions and ideas that would shape the fish industry’s future.
The idea was to tackle the challenges of engaging with the Blue Revolution to discuss accessible, sustainable solutions to the same. The event’s title was ‘The Future of Fish’ and involved panel discussions, workshops, cooking demonstrations, and tastings. Together, the events of this day aim to help experts and leaders gather and discuss the critical factors behind the Blue Revolution while also working on revitalizing the seafood sector.
This article was originally produced by Media Decision and syndicated by Wealth of Geeks.
