Are consumers engaged with sustainability?

Sustainability is a subject that has in the past caused considerable confusion within the seafood industry. Therefore, as a journalist, I take great interest in how it’s perceived by consumers — the people who physically buy fish.

Last week, the opportunity came to indulge this curiosity through a one-off “Sustainable Fish Supper.” For just GBP 60 (EUR 70, USD 100), I was to be treated to a menu comprising several different dishes using UK species, specially chosen and prepared by three of the country’s leading chefs — Valentine Warner, Mitch Tonks and Mark Hix — at the latter’s restaurant in London’s iconic Selfridges.

This event was organized as part of the luxury store’s ongoing Project Ocean campaign.

But the real draw for me wasn’t the food, which was excellent, by the way. It was instead that the chefs would be answering questions from the 100-plus diners as part of the evening’s itinerary. This meant I would be able to hear the views and perceptions on sustainability from a cross-section of UK society.

My preconceptions before I entered Selfridges (through a door plastered with Project Ocean logos, next to a window displaying a giant synthetic cod) were that as these guests had paid to attend the event it was fair to assume they had engaged with the sustainable seafood movement at some level. I therefore reckoned it was likely that many would have formed opinions about aspects of the industry like aquaculture, overfishing and illegal fishing, and the reform of the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP).

I also took it as given that most would be aware of projects like Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s anti-discarding “Fish Fight” campaign that aired on UK television back in January, which two weeks ago picked up a British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) award, the UK version of the Golden Globes.

The Q&A session between the chefs and the guests was, as it turned out, a real eye-opener.

Warner, Tonks and Hix were introduced by Ewan Venters, Selfridges’ food and catering director, who said: “We need people like these chefs so our country can be at the leading edge of sustainable seafood.”

Each chef then went on to talk eloquently about the importance of seafood, the need to value it and the need to change management policy for the benefit of stocks, fishermen and consumers.

Warner, who also presents the BBC television series “What to Eat Now,” said it was imperative UK consumers become adventurous with the fish they buy. 

“All eyes have turned to the ocean and rightly so,” he said. “We’ve been hounding the same fish for quite a long time. There are a lot of others that we used to eat with real enthusiasm in this country but that have fallen off the table in recent times.”

Similarly, Hix challenged the room to try a broad variety of species, rather than just one or two alternatives to the traditional favorites. But a careful, responsible approach is needed, he cautioned.

“Ten years ago, we were all told to eat hoki instead of cod, and sadly by 2006 it was clear that hoki had been overfished. We should learn from these mistakes,” said Hix.

Tonks, who has three restaurants and worked for five years as consultant for Young’s Seafood on sustainability and product development, talked about a hot topic that’s close to his heart — discards — and told guests that more fish is lost through discarding than is landed legally.

There wasn’t, however, an obvious connection between the audience and all these provoking issues. They asked many questions but just one of note: “How do we know whether the fish we buy is sustainable?” To which Tonks answered: “I don’t think anyone can decide if a fish is sustainable or not. But through initiatives like the Marine Stewardship Council we can ascertain if a certain fish is not in abundance.”

That was essentially it. I was genuinely surprised by the diners’ lack of engagement on sustainability issues, and I believe the chefs were, too. This was afterall a “Sustainable Fish Supper” and a rare opportunity for dialogue with three very knowledgeable men. On the reverse of my menu I scribbled the words “consumers engaged?” (That card is right in front of me as I write this commentary.)

Up until that event last Wednesday I felt content, encouraged even, by the degree of recognition the general public had for sustainable seafood initiatives. I had also believed society, particularly in the United Kingdom as a result of the mainstream media coverage given to campaigns like “Fish Fight,” was familiar with the proposals aimed at achieving these goals.

On reflection, it was surely naive to think Joe Public would place anything near the same emphasis or importance on sustainability as the celebrity chefs or any other professional stakeholder, for that matter. Afterall, that’s what the industry is there to deliver — conscience-free seafood.

I now realize that as well as mackerel, sardines, red mullet and cuttlefish, the supper also served up something of a reality check.

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