Seafood Contamination

At last, sustainable sushi cards are on the way!

My latest column for Away.com features seafood choices along the U.S. east coast. While flash-freezing and overnight shipping has made it possible to enjoy seafood nearly anywhere, there's something to enjoying local specialties.

Next time you're headed to the shore, whether it's Maine's lighthouses or Florida's beaches, keep these sustainable seafood tips in mind.

Amber Valletta, model, actress, and official spokesperson for Oceana's Stop Seafood Contamination Campaign, is featured in the September issue of Shape magazine. After a close friend was told by her doctor to avoid getting pregnant because of the dangerous amount of mercury in her blood, Amber was inspired to get involved with us.

On Thursday I wrote about our latest victory in the seafood contamination campaign -- Costco has agreed to post the FDA's warnings about mercury in seafood.

The Washington Post's consumer blog, The Checkout, wrote about the Costco victory this morning.

A Supersized Victory! Costco, the wholesaler whose buy-in-bulk warehouses make some swoon and others swear, has committed to warn its customers about mercury contamination in fish. Costco will post the FDA's mercury advice on signs at seafood counters in all its stores.

Ok, I can't resist -- one more seafood post today.

The EPA has a new web site, Fish Kids, to teach kids about mercury in seafood. There are animated games and stories that drive home the lessons to watch out for mercury.

My favorite part? It's all about the adventures of the Fisher family... which happens to be the last name of yours truly.

As promised on Monday, a post devoted to Taras Grescoe’s Bottomfeeder, which I just finished reading.

I’ve heard Grescoe called the “Michael Pollan for the oceans,” and I think that designation is pretty accurate. They are both compelling writers -- Pollan deals with the land and how it feeds us (and how we treat it in return), and Grescoe does the same for the oceans.

My friends and family have noticed that in the past few months, especially since I started reading Taras Grescoe’s new book Bottomfeeder, I’ve become a sustainable seafood evangelist. (More on that book at a later date, it deserves its own post.) “Is that farmed salmon?” I’ll ask, or, eyeing some frozen shrimp, “Do you know where those come from?” In fact, I ought to tone it down a notch – otherwise I have a feeling people are going to stop inviting me out for meals.

Yesterday's New York Times featured an eloquently urgent op-ed about the demise of wild Pacific salmon. The author, Taras Grescoe, is swearing off salmon for two simple reasons: "it's too scarce and too expensive." While wild Atlantic salmon are already commercially extinct, the commercial Chinook season in California and most of Oregon has been canceled for the first time in 160 years.

Just in time for Mother's Day, Oceana asked me to send a message to help other moms make sure to feed their families seafood that's low in mercury. As a mom with a hectic film career, I know it’s hard to keep track of all the advice you hear to keep your kids healthy - but as the spokesperson for Oceana’s Campaign to Stop Seafood Contamination, I’ve learned a thing or two about mercury in fish.