Carolina Seafood: Keeping it Fresh

Duke University students and Carteret Catch, a fish industry marketing and education group in Carteret County, are teaming up to bring fresh North Carolina seafood to local markets. The collaboration is one of the latest community supported fisheries (CSF) programs to pop up in the United States. The goals are clear: increase access to locally [...]

Eat More Pest Species (Vol. 2)

Amid headlines dominated by health care reform and U.S. relief efforts in Haiti, a story about Asian carp and its potentially disastrous effects on the Great Lakes has grabbed people’s attention. The President, Supreme Court, and now Congress are involved in figuring out how to deal with this invasive species. Supported by SOP, one win-win [...]

Invest in Sustainable Seafood!

If you have a bunch of spare cash and believe that sustainable seafood has growth potential, call up Sea Change Management and ask about their Sea Change Investment Fund. The only such fund in the United States, Sea Change is a venture fund investing in companies that “help to expand the market for environmentally-preferable seafood [...]

Sustainable Versus Unsustainable Tuna (plus a Recipe)

Tuna is probably the most sought after fish in the world. A 282-pound bluefin tuna fetched over $100,000 at a Tokyo auction this year. This is troubling because economics and lack of regulation are driving bluefin tuna populations to dangerously low levels. Fortunately, some fisheries for tuna species such as skipjack, albacore, yellowfin, and bigeye [...]

Eat More Pest Species (Vol. 1)

Marine pest species are fish or shellfish that inhabit bodies of water and fundamentally change (in a bad way) the surrounding ecosystem. They can be introduced to an area directly by human carelessness (e.g., releasing snakehead fish in your local pond) or through the effects of environmental and ecological changes. In this case, the cownose [...]

Casson Trenor: Man on a Mission(Part 2)

At this very moment, Casson is literally on a mission. He is sailing the Eastern Pacific Ocean on Greenpeace’s ocean-voyaging ship, the Esperanza, helping to expose and deter the use of unsustainable fishing tools called fish aggregating devices (FADs). More on that later. Following up on Casson Trenor: Man on a Mission (Part 1), this [...]

Maine Fishermen Think Outside the Net

Fishermen are among the most innovative people in the world. They have to be in order to make a living and survive as an industry. The Midcoast Fishermen’s Cooperative is changing the way they do business with an eye toward sustainability of their livelihood and the resources on which they depend. SOP sat down [...]

What is Sustainable Seafood?

So far, SOP has tried to convince you that the sustainable seafood movement is a legitimate social development. Along the way, some of you may have asked, “What exactly is sustainable seafood?” Let’s take a step back for a quick schooling.
Sustainable seafood is complex and dynamic issue. SOP does not expect seafood consumers [...]

Top 10 Misunderstood Terms in Fisheries Management

Fishery/fisheries: The industry or industries dedicated to the catching, processing, and selling of fish, shellfish, or other aquatic animals; not a hatchery.
Management/Managers: Taking action to regulate the behavior of fishermen and therefore affect a fish population to achieve certain objectives, such as maximizing the harvest of fish while allowing the population to replenish itself. [...]

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What we do...

Sustainable Ocean Project (SOP) brings you inspiring stories and easy to understand information about a growing sustainable and local seafood movement that we all should be a part of.