Making sustainable seafood easier

The FishChoice.com logo

A new site aimed at chefs and retail buyers is attempting to connect those purchasers of sustainable seafood to supply. FishChoice.com says its Web-based tool, launched in early August, will make it a lot easier for buyers to connect with sustainable suppliers.

The site was developed because 90 percent of consumers say it is important for the food industry to be more proactive in addressing environmental concerns and retail buyers and chefs often don’t have the time to research all the options available to them, according to Richard Boot, the founder and president of nonprofit FishChoice.com.

The searchable site currently carries more than 300 different products from 130 suppliers, offering what it says are sustainable versions of a variety of different species, including shrimp, tuna, salmon, pollock, and tilapia—the top five most consumed types of seafood in America, according to San Francisco-based FishChoice.com. The site lists fishers, aquaculture operations and primary processors as well as distributors that are certified to sell Marine Stewardship Council-certified products.

In order to be listed on the site, products need to meet the sustainability requirements of the Marine Stewardship Council, the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch Program, Blue Ocean Institute, New England Aquarium, Fish Wise and Sea Choice, Boot says. When any of the certifiers updates their listings, FishChoice.com’s site is immediately updated, he says.

The database is searchable in many ways including species name, sustainability ranking and origin, to help buyers make local purchases if desired. FishChoice.com is free for both suppliers and purchasers. It is supported with grants from Packard, the Keith Campbell Foundation for the Environment, the Marisla Foundation and the SalesForce Foundation.