U.K. supermarket Waitrose has banned swordfish sales after failing to locate a sustainable source of the species, the high-end retailer said this week.
The decision comes several months after the retailer suspended swordfish sales following warnings from environmental organizations regarding diminishing world stocks for the species.
"We're simply not happy to sell fish that could be endangered," said Quentin Clark, senior fish buyer at Waitrose.
Sustainability of global fish stocks hit the headlines in the U.K. this month following the screenings of the film, “The End of the Line,” which focuses on the impact of global overfishing.
"Since promoting our support for ‘The End of the Line,’ our fish counter staff have been inundated with customers asking where their fish comes from," said Clark.
The U.K. store claims that in the last week, its sales have "increased by 14 percent compared to last year," led by sales of their prepackaged fish, which have increased by 25 percent.
Waitrose’s swordfish ban follows the announcement last week by fellow U.K. retailer Marks & Spencer, which sells more than 20,000 tuna sandwiches a day, that it will source only pole and line or line-caught tuna for all products.
Marks & Spencer, which claims to be the first retailer in the U.K. to make the 100 percent switch, hopes that by the end of 2009 all of its long-living seafood products, such as cans of tuna, will be pole and line caught.
