"Is That Salmon Farm Raised?"

This is a common question we get day in and day out at the shop. These people are pointing to some of the prettiest looking salmon in the case day in and day out. We respond it is, and then the response is with some sort variance of the following toned with hate and disgust. "I don't eat farmed fish."

I find this response rather comical as I peak at the grocery cart full of farmed onions, bananas, nuts, potatoes, black beans, chicken, duck, pork, radishes, frozen broccoli, bread... I mean I could really go on and on. If you look at what you purchase on a day in and day out basis you eat nothing but farmed food. And a lot of it is produced on a mass scale started back during the Green Revolution.

Farming has been around for, to be in specific, a long time. Farmed fish, on a massive feed the world scale, has been around for around 70 years. It is new and in the infancy of its scientific study. Some farmed fish are better than others for many different reasons. If you read Paul Greenberg's book you will hear a lot about the history of modern aquaculture. And in is book he talks about ow farmed salmon, even poorly done, as less negative impact on our world than pig, chicken, and beef farms. There is still a long way to go in working through the ecology of farmed fish but it is the future of fish mongers.

Who will help to discern the difference between farmed fish for the general shopper. Talked to your monger. He knows a lot.

The topic of farmed fish will be a never ending one for the Fishmongers Preservation Group.

NC House Bill 353

So NC House Bill 353, click the link to find out and it is very easy to read, puts three NC coastal fish to a status of Coastal Game Fish. Striped Bass, Speckled trout, and Drum would all change to the status of Coastal Game Fish, which means they can only be caught by hook and line. They cannot be sold or traded, and cannot be processed and sold or traded outside of the state or for any commercial endeavor.

What does this all mean. For one I won't be selling any of these fish if this bill passes. But in the long haul it might not be such a bad thing. These 3 fish are fantastic to eat, incredibly beautiful animals. That being said we have decimated the populations and clearly are damaging the greater eco system of NC coastal waters.

Wile in the sort I run I would prefer to sell NC drum, and speckled trout, I think in general in might be a very good thing. That way one day my children can enjoy these fish, even if they have to catch them all on there own.

Good Reading

A friend and fellow fish monger lent me the book "Four Fish" by Paul Greenberg. It is a truly interesting read and hits at the heart of Fish preservation, and therefore at fishmonger preservation. I think I will discuss several of the ideas from this book over the next several posts. I look forward to it and hope you fellow fishmongers will comment on your thoughts about how to keep on keeping on.

Help keep your fishmonger stocks high, by fresh seafood!!!

A Call to Ranks

Being the first post, I thought it appropriate to start a call to ranks. I look to unite the dwindling fishmonger numbers throughout the fish world. Here you can find a little information on what a fishmonger is and some history. It is on the Internet so it must be true. So as we begin our quest to save the depleting stocks of fishmongers, I call upon the bold and brave to join our cause and continue to fight for sustainable practices in hiring fishmongers.