Teach me about fish

blue_elle

I wasn't really a seafood eater until I discovered sushi about 7 years ago. After that my fish consumption was mostly in restaurants, but I love salmon and tuna and have just recently started adding them to my basket at the market.

So what should I know about buying fish? I know tuna has a high mercury content, so I try not to eat it too frequently, but are there any tuna options that are lower mercury? What about packaged tuna - I like to make dip out of it, but should I avoid it?

TIA!

CurbsideProphet

Seafood Watch is a great resource. You can search for specific fish and download a pocket guide to take with you while you shop/order. I think you can get updates sent to your phone if you have an iphone.

treesapplaud

All fish do not have a high mercury content... fatty fish do, so those which are good for getting your omega-3 fatty acids.

Herring, mackerel, sardines, albacore tuna and salmon. The heavy metals are stored in the fat of fish. Personally I eat fatty fish max 2x a week as I haven't had kids yet.

 

Fondue II

I'd recommend buying wild fish vs. farm raised salmon.  Farm raised have more fat, lower protein levels, and less usable omega-3 fatty acids than wild salmon.  Also, farm raised salmon's food contains artificial pigments to enhance their color, and higher amounts of PCB (highly toxic organic compounds) levels are present.  And besides, wild salmon just tastes better.  Wild--Salmon the way nature intended it. 

SuperGreen

Fondue II:

I'd recommend buying wild fish vs. farm raised salmon.  Farm raised have more fat, lower protein levels, and less usable omega-3 fatty acids than wild salmon.  Also, farm raised salmon's food contains artificial pigments to enhance their color, and higher amounts of PCB (highly toxic organic compounds) levels are present.  And besides, wild salmon just tastes better.  Wild--Salmon the way nature intended it. 

Also, farm-raised salmon are raised in open pens and cages in coastal waters. Waste from these farms is released directly into the ocean. Parasites and diseases from farmed salmon can spread to wild fish swimming near the farms and escaping farmed salmon can harm wild populations.

Plus, farm-raised salmon has the highest antibiotic levels of anything you eat

clea

http://fooddemocracy.wordpress.com/2007/11/06/80-of-us-fish-imported-less-than-1-inspected-most-loaded-with-anitbiotics/

puppydoggie

fish is not green!!

Alisha_A

puppydoggie:

fish is not green!!

Are you being serious?

Back to the OP:

Its very difficult in most places to get sustainable sushi. Tuna is very very rarely even remotely sustainable. I love tuna. *sigh*

Please please please only buy and eat wild salmon! Farm-raised salmon is not only bad for the environment, mushy and inferior and lower in health benefits, it threatens the safety of wild salmon.

If you want to save wild salmon, eat it!!