I'm on a budget!

Because financial availability heavily influences buyers choice of fish, so analysis of the data took into account that local citizens would be on a budget.

http://weeklygroceryshopping.com/grocerybudgetingsteps/determine-budget/

Classmates Han Nuel Han, Brooke Howard, and Nic Woolstenhulme concluded the average price of each section of the gathered information in terms of the MBA Resource Card. Of all the surveyed stores:

• $8.78 was the average price for 60 surveyed fish off the best choice
• $7.26/lb was the average price for 70 surveyed fish off the good alternative choice 
• $11.47 was the average price for 61 surveyed fish the avoid lists

*Highest fish you can purhcase: Ahi Tuna 19$/lb* 

This is a cross species projection of the types of available fish at each sore.
This data shows that the environmentally damaging fish are the most costly, to the buyers as well.


This also suggests that price is function of species rarity, not sustainability. Good alternative's would provide the most mutual benefit for the civil and ecological terms of this concept, but additional financial support for the "best" sustainable options would provide the best ecological betterment.

Best Choices

     As you can see from the headlining picture of the blog, there is a copy of the Seafood WATCH National Consumer Guide presented by Monterey Bay Aquarium. Today I'm going to talk about the "Best Choices" on that list and where the best places to find them in stores in the Tucson, AZ area. It is also not specified if the seafood found at the stores is fresh, frozen, etc. Below you will find a picture from the national guide of all the best choices:

Here are the best choices, where to find them, and how expensive some are:

Abalone: Food City, $2.99.

Arctic Char: None found.

Bass, Striped: 

Costco (Kino & the 10), 

Safeway (Swan & Sunrise), 

LeeLee Oriental (Orange Grove & La Cholla) $3.99/lb.

Clams, Mussels, Oysters: 

Safeway ($1.99 Clams), 

Fry's, 

Sam's Club ($12.98 for Clams, Mussels, and Oysters all together), 

Albertson's, 

Walmart, 

Sprouts, 

Bashas ($2.99 8oz for Clams, Mussels, and Oysters all together), 

LeeLee Oriental, 

Food City, 

Target, 

Whole Foods, 

Trader Joe's, 

Food Conspiracy.

Cod, Pacific: 

Sprouts,

Costco ($15.99/lb), 

Trader Joe's, 

Walmart ($13.68), 

Safeway, Fry's, 

Sam's Club, 

Albertson's, 

Bashas, 

Target, 

Whole Foods.

Crab, Dungeness & Stone: 

Albertson's ($6.99/lb), 

Fry's, 

Walmart, 

Sam's Club ($16.98), 

Safeway ($9.99), 

Bashas.

Halibut: 

Trader Joe's ($8.99/10oz), 

AJ's, 

Fry's ($8.99), 

Albertson's, 

Safeway, 

Bashas, 

Costco, 

Sprouts, 

Walmart ($15.95), 

LeeLee Oriental, 

Whole Foods.

Lobster, Spiny: Costco, Safeway, Walmart ($15.88).

Sablefish/Black Cod: 

Safeway (Swan & Sunrise),

  Bashas (Kolb & Sunrise).

Salmon: 

Trader Joe's, 

Sprouts, 

Costco, AJ's, Albertson's, 

Safeway, 

Fry's, Target

Sardines, Pacific: 

Fry's ($1.00), 

Albertson's, 

Walmart, 

Costco, 

Safeway ($1.84), 

Bashas.

Scallops: 

AJ's, Walmart ($5.48), 

Safeway, 

Fry's, 

Sprouts, 

Albertson's, 

Costco, 

Bashas, 

Whole Foods ($12.99).

Shrimp, Pink: Costco ($9.99/lb), 

Trader Joe's, Walmart, Fry's, 

Sam's Club, 

Safeway,

Bashas ($9.99).

Tilapia: Albertson's, Target, Trader Joe's, Fry's ($6.99), Safeway, Bashas, Whole Foods.

Trout, Rainbow: Sprouts, AJ's, Fry's, Sam's Club ($12.00), Bashas, Target, Walmart.

Tuna, Albacore/White canned: Fry's, Sam's Club, Walmart, Bashas ($9.00/lb), Sprouts. 

Tuna, Skipjack/Light canned: Walmart, Safeway ($3.79), Whole Foods, Target, Fry's.

Tuna, Yellowfin: Safeway ($9.99), Bashas, Costco, Sprouts, Fry's.

It is important to realize that some of the seafood from the "Good Alternatives" and "Avoid" list are included in this list as well. Pay close attention to the card because some of the options are caught and processed differently, but they are the same type of seafood.

NOTE: This data was collected from students in my Marine Conservation class at the University of Arizona throughout the middle of February, 2014. It only shows stores that we chose to investigate and some of the prices and locations are available. For the location's specific addresses that are not available it means the fish are located in multiple locations in the Tucson area.

**More information about the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood watch movement can be found at http://www.seafoodwatch.org/

How can I help from Tucson, Arizona?

The way to ensure the future of our oceans is protected is to buy ecologically safe seafood when you purchase it at the grocery store. The Gulf of California heavily influences the seafood industry in Arizona, which means we are directly affected by their overfishing and destructive methods.

What is the COOL Law?
Country of Origin Label. It is illegal to not have one of these on your seafood from the grocery store, although it is slightly unregulated. Knowing where your seafood comes from can be very informative, because some countries practice more environmentally friendly fishing tactics than others.


I don't know where to buy sustainable seafood!
Major corporations like Safeway and Wal-Mart have made the commitment to only buy sustainable seafood, but as data in this research experiment reveals, some seafood in the store is not as good for our oceans as claimed. However, for beginners, it is easy to make a change to purchasing seafood from these stores instead of those that neglect the environmental aspect all together.

 


Also, other users of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch app for your iPhone have logged in what seafood certain stores carry, which is very helpful at the grocery store. As more people use the app and log in grocer sustainability status', it will become more useful to other users.

What is "farmed" fish that I see in parenthesis on the tri-fold?
Farmed fish mean that they are a product of aquaculture, which are confined pens in the open oceans where fish are bred commercially primarily for consumption. These are good for the environment because they do not threaten a major decline in the wild populations. However, aquaculture conditions vary by each fish species because they each have distinct characteristics required for farming. There are still issues with aquaculture, like interbreeding of wild and farmed fish, disease outburst, and the effect of fishmeal upkeep on those populations. These effects are minor compared to the possibility of a fully sustainable source of fish protein in aquaculture, and is considered the "best" list of seafood watch food. Salmon and tilapia are common fish that are primarily farmed.

http://www.nireus.com/40_2/The-Mediterranean-Fish-Farming

What about sushi?
There is also a sushi guide that research from this study was not conducted for, but is still helpful! It is also accessible via a pocket guide, and a downloadable app on the specific sushi page.

Who is behind these labels for sustainable fisheries?
The Marine Stewardship Council was established in 1997 and operates as a private sector. Instead of government mandated fisheries, this is an independent ownership that encourages consumers to make the right decision to protect exploited species, and corporations will respond to this consumer demand.

What is happening in our oceans?

When industrial fishing began in the beginning 1800s, the ocean was thought of as bottomless. However, it is in a consistent state of exploitation and quickly reaching it's limit. Overfishing of the oceans has led to a 90% decline of fish, which leaves the entire ocean in a silent collapse. These unregulated and destructive fishing methods, in addition to 85% of worldwide fisheries being overfished, are ruining the ecosystem as a whole. Although it is easy to ignore these issues, without immediate action, these species of the marine environment will be unable to recover.

What is bycatch?

When fisherman throw out a net, it is highly unlikely that they only catch their target fish. Bycatch is the content of all of the others marine animals that are caught and killed in the process of fishing, including birds and turtles. In shrimp fisheries, there is almost a 6:1 ratio of bycatch to shrimp catch! There are 200,000 loggerhead sea turtles caught each year by bycatch, and thats only one species. More marine animals threatened by fishing gear include: 50,000 of leatherback turtles annually, and sharks, whales, dolphins, and other porpoises. 20% of shark species are endangered to extinction, mainly because of these fishing methods.

What are these fishing methods? How are they dangerous for the ocean?

There are many ways to catch fish, however the most used methods are Trawling (54%), Purse Seine (24%), and dredges.

Trawling:

http://fijisharkdiving.blogspot.com/2013/09/bottom-trawling.html

When nets are dragged across the ocean floor for many miles, it destroys everything. Coral reefs are particularly damaged, which contain 32 of the 34 animal phyla in the world! Terrestrial, or land, ecosystems only contain 18 of 32! These "biotic" reefs that support the edges of the oceans are becoming extinct, and the effects will be detrimental. 

   

Purse Seine:

http://goodfishbadfish.com.au/?page_id=31

Similar to trawling, purse seine fishing encloses the net, making it nearly impossible for other species  to escape. It is particularly used for schools of fish and sardines, but a notable example is tuna. Dolphins were being killed by the masses as bycatch during tuna hunts, until legislation in the 90's made it illegal. Their species has not yet fully recovered, and fishing pressure on tuna leaves the ocean almost empty of them.

Dredges: 

http://greengirlsglobal.com/blog/help-save-the-seaside-lyme-bay-reefs

Dredges are metal baskets that are dragged along the sea floor, similar to trawling. They target clams, oyster, and scallops, and are just as destructive to the sensitive ecosystems at the bottom of the ocean. The bycatch in this fishing method is also overwhelming, as there are a lot of bottom dweller species.

What can I do to help?

These harmful methods have alternatives, like farmed fishing, also known as aquaculture. Fish that are caught with poll and line do almost no damage, and troll caught fishing is also considered environmentally friendly. The Monterey Bay Aquarium has created a Resource Index Card (posted as the top banner) to help people distinguish ecologically beneficial fish for consumption. Printable pocket tri-folds can be found on the Monterey Bay Aquarium seafood watch website. Because many people consistently have their phone at the grocery store, there is a free downloadable app that is also found on the website.

By only purchasing seafood that is sustainable and not destructive to our environment with these fishing methods, we can start to protect the future of our oceans.

Additional information on fishing can be found here.

Monterey Bay Aquarium has created seafood cards for specific areas throughout North America. The National Index Card is posted above, but for more specific information, regional sustainability  cards can be found here.