ABS Seafood deepens sustainability commitment

San Francisco seafood distributor ABS Seafood on Tuesday announced a commitment to eliminate non-sustainable seafood items from its sales inventory. Gone are orange roughy and Chilean sea bass and, by year’s end, bluefin tuna.

“ABS is aware of the problems facing our oceans,” said Chris Kondo, a partner at ABS Seafood. “As a seafood business it is our responsibility to care for the sea and the animals in it. If we want to save our oceans, we need to work together. One small business can’t do it alone. But we’re going to step up and do our part, starting right now.”

In the coming months, the company will discontinue other items, add more local and environmentally friendly seafood options and improve traceability.

“Seafood consumers have a right to know where their seafood comes from and how it was caught or raised,” said Kondo. “We will be increasing the access our customers have to this kind of information.”

The company is selling off its standing inventory of bluefin tuna, added Kondo, and as of 1 January 2011 ABS will no longer offer the species. In its place will be sustainable alternatives, such as U.S.-caught skipjack tuna, which also have lower mercury levels than larger tunas.

Additionally, ABS linked forces with ilovebluesea.com, an online market selling only sustainable seafood, also based in San Francisco. ABS will provide fresh, sustainable seafood to San Francisco Bay Area restaurants and markets while ilovebluesea.com ships direct nationwide to consumers, restaurants and markets.

“Sustainability is the obvious choice for any responsible purveyor that hopes to remain in the seafood industry,” said Kondo.

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