The authors of a new sustainable seafood Web site are applauding British celebrity chef Raymond Blanc for publicizing his restaurant's sustainable seafood purchasing policy and offering more information about the seafood on the menu.
Initially, Fish2Fork.com criticized Blanc and his Oxfordshire restaurant, Le Manoir au Quat' Saisons, for failing to provide enough information about seafood. Last week, the Web site — created by the authors of the "End of the Line" film, including former Daily Telegraph editor Charles Clover — released a report calling out numerous Michelin-starred restaurants for serving seafood from overexploited fisheries.
But this week, Blanc — host of the BBC2 TV series "The Restaurant" — responded by filling out and submitting a Fish2Fork questionnaire, and, as a result, Le Manoir's rating on the site improved significantly.
"We do a lot to ensure sustainable and ethical purchasing. We haven't in the past made a fuss about what we are doing, but we think now is the right time to do so," Gary Jones, executive chef of Le Manoir, told Fish2Fork.
"We have updated our Web site to include more information on what we have done and we are adjusting our menus so that they show clearly if a fish is wild or farmed. If it is wild, we also describe the methods used to capture it," he said. "We thought we were doing all the right things."
Le Manoir was the first Michelin-starred restaurant to earn Marine Stewardship Council certification.
"Every fish we sell is rigorously selected in order to fit all the criteria of sustainability, environmental and good ethics," said Le Manoir in a statement posted on its Web site. "Our suppliers are selected on the grounds that they have a sustainable approach to fishing. Our fish must come from fisheries using environmentally responsible harvesting methods, minimizing the negative effects on marine aquaculture."
Several other restaurants listed in the report, including J. Sheekey and Scott's, have also contacted Fish2Fork to provide more information about their seafood sourcing policies, and Fish2Fork said their ratings will be updated accordingly.
October 25, 2009
