Environmental Leader

Companies are beginning to warm up to the idea of sustainable seafood, Mediapost reports. Whole Foods is capitalizing on the buzz, with an announcement this week of the first certified-sustainable tuna fish to hit the market. Sold under the brand name American Tuna, the fish is produced by the American Albacore Fishing Association, which consists of 21 family-owned boats in the Northwestern U.S.

Wal-Mart’s announcement in 2006 that it would move to 100 percent percent sustainable fish suppliers, certified by the Marine Stewardship Council, has helped push awareness.

But the seafood industry has some definite marketing problems. Fish is pushed as part of a healthy diet, but consumers worry about problems like mercury, PCB, and antibiotic levels. In order to clear the air a bit, this week the government launched fishwatch.noaa.gov, where consumers can get info on 50 species of fish.

Wegmans Food Markets and Environmental Defense recently announced a purchasing policy for farmed shrimp.

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