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Is Mr. Goodfish helpful?
Monday,10 May,2010 08:53:18
It is true the that the seafood industry has poorly educated the consumers all over the world about the importance of seafood but are programs such as Mr. Goodfish helpful?
There is no point in educating people and promoting seafood unless we have a harmonious story to tell because all that will happen is total confusion and in the end no one will know what to believe.
I wonder why the world aquarium industry is trying to get more and more in this space?
After the European Seafood Exposition, I visited Nausicaa Marine Centre in Boulogne-sur-Mer, unbeknown at the time that they were one of the driving organizers behind ‘Mr.Goodfish’. We were given a briefing after our visit and then I saw this article.
Where do you draw the line between an organization that has American Sea Lions on display, teaching them tricks to enthrall a paying audience and feeding them with copious quantities of fish and yet, on the other hand, suggests that they cannot promote Atlantic salmon through Mr.Goodfish because of the feed ratios in aquaculture?
Where do you draw the line between an organization that will talk openly about the feed ratios in aquaculture and yet not make comparisons with other farmed protein such as red meats, pigs and poultry?
Where do you draw a line on an organization that clearly has a strong association with an African country though it displays and then only wishes to promote that country with prawn/shrimp products through Mr.Goodfish when clearly many other countries offer the same, or maybe even better, credentials in sustainability?
The truth is important if the seafood industry is to gain respect from its global consumers and part-truths do nothing in my opinion to assist.
The people/organizations supporting Mr.Goodfish may well have the right intentions but ‘a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing’. Aquariums attract a lot of impressionable young people and if the wrong story is told, do we realize how much time it would take to get this put right? When kids go to school there is generally some balance in the teaching but in aquariums who controls what information is passed on?
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