Sustainable Seafood Abroad: Canada

A growing number of Canadian companies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) are all aboot sustainable seafood. Unfortunately, the Canadian government has not been keeping up, as they voted against international measures needed to protect bluefin tuna. However, SOP found plenty of positive storylines to illustrate Canada’s contributions to the movement.

In a classic case of one-upsmanship, [...]

Is Genetically-Modified Salmon Sustainable?

Critics of genetically-modified (GM) foods are pulling out all their tricks to thwart a biotechnology company’s attempt to begin marketing GM salmon. The CEO of the company, Aqua Bounty Technologies, fires back that their salmon is “sustainable”. SOP weighs in on this touchy topic to tease out what is really at issue here.

Before addressing [...]

Costco on the Path to Sustainability?

Does anyone else find it odd to hear the words Costco (the largest warehouse club chain in the US) and sustainability in the same sentence? SOP is not yet convinced that the two are synonymous with each other. But Costco recently took action that was a small step in advancing the sustainable seafood movement.

This past [...]

Veta la Palma Takes Polyculture to a New Level

The Spanish farming estate, Veta la Palma, has created a polyculture system of epic proportions. Not only does the company use the environment sustainably, it actually improves it. Following up on our introduction to polyculture, SOP dissects the many facets of this extraordinary operation.
The estate covers 28,000 acres: 8,000 for fish farming, 9,000 for farming [...]

Polyculture: The New Aquaculture?

Polyculture is a sustainable and more productive way to farm-raise products from the sea. So why isn’t every aquaculture operation in the world doing it? SOP profiles this ancient technique and speaks to its potential for our future.
More than 1,000 years ago during the Tang Dynasty, Chinese fish farmers introduced the practice of polyculture. [...]

Is Farm-Raised Seafood Sustainable or Not? (Part 3)

Finally, SOP unveils answers to the question we have all been waiting for: What specific farm-raised seafood products are most sustainable? Below we offer good and bad selections of farmed seafood. But, because nothing is absolute in sustainable seafood, you should still ask questions at the restaurant or fish counter.
As a class, cultured shellfish are [...]

Marvesta Raises Shrimp Above Ground

Starting in 2002, three young proprietors combined their expertise in business and technology, and applied it to sustainable aquaculture. The friends found a plot of land on Maryland’s Eastern Shore for their operation and set off to carve a niche in the market of the most consumed seafood in the U.S…..shrimp. SOP spoke with Scott [...]

Is Farm-Raised Seafood Sustainable or Not? (Part 2)

When evaluating whether a particular fish farm is sustainable or not, it is helpful to think about where the operation is located within the environment. Each location has its own set of pros and cons. Following up on Part 1, SOP peels away the next layer to help answer the complex question of whether your [...]

Is Farm-Raised Seafood Sustainable or Not? (Part 1)

Last year, seafood raised at aquaculture operations, or farms, reached a major milestone. More seafood eaten on this planet now comes from farms than from the wild. As the human population grows, this trend will continue, demanding ecologically responsible aquaculture. In Part 1 of this series, SOP boils down attributes that determine a farm’s sustainability.
A [...]

Wylie Dufresne: A Model for the Future

Wylie Dufresne, chef and owner of Lower East Side’s WD-50, pushes the culinary world in new directions with precision and confidence. Tapping into knowledge gained from the scientific discipline of molecular gastronomy, he churns out progressive American cuisine using nontraditional tools such as immersion circulators, liquid nitrogen, and Cryovac machines. SOP was delighted to learn [...]

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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.