How to Be a Conscious Eater

for example, can reduce bycatch and seafloor damage. These

are some of the reasons why Seafood Watch’s rating system

includes the type of gear involved. The better options are hook-

and-line tools, which allow fishermen to more rapidly release

bycatch rather than kill them.

Illegal fishing. An estimated one-fifth of fish and seafood caught

worldwide is illegal, unreported, or unregulated. These seedy

practices can result in both depletion of species and damage to

marine ecosystems.

WHAT’S A CONSCIOUS EATER TO DO?

Use the Seafood Watch tools for both grocery and restau-

rant decisions in order to focus on sustainability. Ideally,

cross-reference their guides with two handy consumer tools

for mercury levels and omega-3 content. The Environmental

Working Group (EWG)’s Consumer Guide to Seafood has an inter-

active tool to personalize a seafood list to your unique

profile, as well as a simple cheat sheet of their “best bets,”

meaning those fish are very high in omega-3s and low in

mercury and come from sustainable sources. Their best

bets are salmon and sardines, mussels and Atlantic mack-

erel, and rainbow trout. Their “avoid” list consists of king

mackerel, marlin, orange roughy, shark, swordfish, and

tilefish (six of the same ones to avoid for mercury alone).

The Environmental Defense Fund’s “Seafood Selector” lets you fil-

ter by just eco-friendly or eco-friendly + healthy, and then

to sort by “best choices” down to “worst choices.” They also

provide a sushi-specific guide. Their best choices are wild

Alaskan salmon, albacore tuna, and Pacific sardines from

the United States and Canada, canned salmon, and sable-

fish (also called black cod).

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