Fishing industry, USDA square off over definition of organic fish

Piscean Match

What makes a fish organic? That query has the U.S. Agriculture Department swimming in circles as it fleshes out a new organic rule. Is wild-caught fish the purest, or is closely monitored farm-raised fish the better option? If the latter, does it matter if the fish eats organic plant-based feed or -- cue creepy music -- other fish? Two USDA task forces have made conflicting recommendations, and observers are scratching their heads. "If you can't call a wild Alaska salmon true and organic, what can you call organic?" asks Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska). But many say wild-caught fish shouldn't qualify: "What it comes down to is organic is about agriculture, and catching wild animals isn't agriculture," says Rebecca Goldburg of Environmental Defense. Whatever the outcome, consumers won't see the organic-fish label for several years. For now, the debate rages, with George Leonard of the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch Program calling the whole thing "strange." He read our addled minds.

straight to the source: The New York Times, Andrew Martin, 28 Nov 2006

straight to the source: The Washington Post, Juliet Eilperin, 18 Oct 2006

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Comments: (3 comments)

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worth mentioning

In "Show Us Yor Titanium", the brief alludes to the particulate matter's ability to wash away, but does not outright say that the water systems will be more contaminated, nor to what extent.

by gristmonkey at 11:15 AM on 28 Nov 2006

"and when the bird away does fly"

From the NY Times:
<<
The author of "Right Wing, Wrong Bird: Why the Tactics of the Religious Right Won't Fly With Most Conservative Christians," Dr. Hunter has argued that a large number of conservative Christians feel that right-wing religious groups do not represent them, because they focus their energies too narrowly on what he calls moral issues, often to the exclusion of economic and environmental concerns.
>>

Too bad the Reverend Doctor Hunter has so narrow an interpretation of "moral." But clearly he was inspired with that amazing title.

Chickens deserve our true friendship! So do fish! So do other sentient beings! Let us learn to be kind.

by caniscandida at 11:48 AM on 28 Nov 2006

Organic fish

This is my first time posting here so not sure I've got the right place, but I wrote a reply to the NY Times about the organic fish story and thought I'd share:

In yesterday's article `Free or Farmed, When is a Fish Really Organic?,' Andrew Martin examined the issue of organic fish labelling. Labelling farmed carnivorous seafood - such as salmon - as organic would represent a denigration of the organic label and dupe consumers into believing that they are encouraging sustainable fishing, when in fact they would still be directly contributing to the collapse of marine ecosystems. Farmed fish are fed fishmeal that is largely comprised of by-catch from the very commercial fisheries responsible for the decimation of ocean wildlife. With organisations like WWF and Sustain in the UK recently issuing reports claiming that world-wide fish stocks could collapse as early as 2050, and people like Sea Shepherd Foundation founder Captain Paul Watson saying things like `feeding your children fish is a form of child abuse' (because of mercury poisoning), surely the `organic' label must be vigorously guarded from commercial compromise. Our oceans are in deep trouble, and the time has come to defend them.
Nicole Hess
London

I've also got a bit more about it on my blog: planetegg.blogspot.com.

by hessster at 6:21 AM on 29 Nov 2006

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