Seafood List
The group gives somewhat US-centric lists of recommendations – the best seafood choices, fish to avoid, as well as "good alternatives". The "avoid" category is for seafood which is overfished and/or fished or farmed in ways that harm other marine life or the environment. Health alerts for fish with high levels of contaminants (e.g. mercury, dioxins, PCBs) are also noted, although they may appear in any category.
The Seafood Watch website includes both regional and country-wide guides for the United States. Pocket guides are available from the aquarium and further information is on the web site. Several of the regional guides are also available in Spanish. The guides are updated twice annually, while the website is updated more often. Recommended seafood includes Sardines, US-farmed Sturgeon (but not wild caught), Atlantic Croaker, Pacific Halibut, Wreckfish, White Seabass and Dungeness Crab. Restaurants and retailers are also targeted with an educational program developed by Seafood Watch.
In 2010 Seafood Watch added its “Super Green” list, which features seafood that it is good for human health and does not harm the oceans. The Super Green list highlights products that are currently on the Seafood Watch "Best Choices" (green) list, are low in environmental contaminants and are good sources of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids.
Recommendations are updated regularly; to view the latest, visit SeafoodWatch.org.
Below are some fish currently rated Avoid by Seafood Watch
| Common name | Latin name | Source | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chilean Seabass/Toothfish | Dissostichus eleginoides | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | |
| Atlantic Cod | Gadidae | Atlantic | |
| King Crab | imported | Some imported king crab is poached. Seafood Watch recommends domestic king crab from Alaska and California, whose fishing is better controlled. | |
| Atlantic Flounders, Soles | Atlantic | ||
| Groupers | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | ||
| Atlantic Halibut | Atlantic | ||
| Spiny lobster | Caribbean imported | ||
| Mahi mahi/Dolphinfish | (imported) | ||
| Monkfish | |||
| Orange Roughy | Hoplostethus atlanticus | Habitat destruction, bycatch of non-target organisms, and overfishing. There are also health concerns about mercury or other contaminants. | |
| Rockfish | Pacific | ||
| Salmon | farmed, including Atlantic | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | |
| Scallops: Sea | Mid-Atlantic | ||
| Sharks | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | ||
| Shrimp | imported farmed or wild | ||
| Red Snapper | |||
| Sturgeon Caviar | imported wild | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | |
| Swordfish | imported | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | |
| Tuna: Albacore, Bigeye, Yellowfin | longline | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants | |
| Bluefin Tuna | Limit consumption due to concerns about mercury or other contaminants |
Read more about this topic: Seafood Watch
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