Some retailers are taking lobster off the menu after an assessment from an influential conservation group that the harvest of the seafood poses too much of a risk to rare whales and should be avoided.
Seafood Watch has added the American and Canadian lobster fisheries to its “red list” of species to avoid
Whales can suffer injuries and fatalities when they become entangled in the gear that connects to lobster traps on the ocean floor. Seafood Watch rates the sustainability of different kinds of seafood. It said this week it has added the American and Canadian lobster fisheries to its “red list” of species to avoid.
The organization, based at Monterey Bay Aquarium in California, said in a report that “the fishing industry is a danger to North Atlantic right whales because current management measures do not go far enough to mitigate entanglement risks and promote recovery of the species.”
Thousands of businesses use Seafood Watch’s recommendations
Thousands of businesses use Seafood Watch’s recommendations to inform seafood buying decisions. Also, many have pledged to avoid any items that appear on the red list. A spokesperson for Blue Apron, the New York meal kit retailer, said the company stopped offering a seasonal lobster box prior to the report. Moreover, all of the seafood it is currently using follows Seafood Watch’s guidelines. HelloFresh, the Germany-based meal kit company that is the largest such company operating in the U.S. Th company also pledged shortly after the announcement to stop selling lobster.
“HelloFresh is committed to responsible sourcing and follows guidelines from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program,” said Saskia Leisewitz, a spokesperson for HelloFresh.
Seafood Watch assigns ratings of “best choice,” “good alternative” and “avoid”
Seafood Watch assigns ratings of “best choice,” “good alternative” and “avoid” to more than 2,000 seafood items based on how sustainably they are managed. The organization’s recommendations have been influential in the past, such as when it red-listed the Louisiana shrimp fishery, prompting efforts to better protect sea turtles. The fishery was later removed from the red list.
The lobster fishing industry has come under scrutiny from Seafood Watch because of the threat of entanglement in fishing gear. The North Atlantic right whales number less than 340 and entanglement is one of the two biggest threats they face, along with collisions with ships, scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and other groups have said. The population of giant animals, which were decimated during the commercial whaling era generations ago, has fallen in recent years.