Sustainable Seafood

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Recommended Fish Substitutes

	Try	Eliminated
	Summer Flounder, Turbot or Dover Sole	Orange Rougy
	Sablefish or Pacific Halibut	Chilean Seabass
	Mahi Mahi or North Atlantic Swordfish	Marlin
	North Atlantic Swordfish	Shark

For those of you interested in learning more about this complex process by which we determine sustainability, we suggest you visit the following websites for an in depth description of criteria.

www.nmfs.noaa.gov/fishwatch
www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx

Information on Fish Substitutes

Greenland Turbot (Reinhardtius hippoglossoides)

• Greenland turbot populations are healthy; no overfishing is occurring.
• This fishery is being carefully monitored due to recent declines in the numbers of juvenile fish.
• Greenland turbot is a healthy, low-fat source of protein and is high in omega-3 fatty acids. For more information, see Nutrition Facts. (USDA)
• Greenland turbot is not a true turbot (Psetta maxima) and actually more closely resembles its relative, halibut; however, it is marketed as turbot in the United States so as not to confuse it with Pacific halibut. (It is marketed as Greenland halibut in Europe so as not to confuse it with true turbot). In U.S. markets, Greenland turbot typically comes from U.S. or Canadian fisheries

Dover Sole (Microstomus pacificus)

• Dover sole population levels are high and no overfishing is occurring.
• Federal fisheries management measures have reduced the number of vessels fishing in the Dover sole fishery, resulting in greater conservation and improved economic benefits to the fishery.
• Dover sole is an excellent source of low-fat protein, calcium, and other important nutrients. For more information, please see Nutrition Facts. (USDA)
• Almost 25 million pounds of Dover sole were caught in U.S. commercial fisheries in 2008, at a value of $9.3 million. The majority of the harvest took place off Oregon and California.

Sablefish (Black Cod) (Anoplopoma fimbria)

• Sablefish population levels are moderate, and no overfishing is occurring.
• Alaskan sablefish are managed using individual fishing quotas (IFQs) which assign a quota to individuals and seek to provide some ownership of the resource to Alaskan communities.
• Sablefish is rich in omega-3 fatty acids. For more information, see Nutrition Facts. (USDA)
• Most of the total world catch of sablefish comes from Alaska. Oregon, Washington, and California generally account for less than one-third of the U.S. harvest. Outside of the United States, sablefish are caught along the British Columbia coast, from the Vancouver area north to the Alaskan border

Pacific Halibut (Hippoglossus stenolepis)

• Pacific halibut populations are healthy.
• Pacific halibut is managed by a treaty between the U.S. and Canada through recommendations of the International Pacific Halibut Commission.
• Halibut is low in saturated fat and sodium and is a very good source of protein, niacin, phosphorus, and selenium. For more on nutrition, see Nutrition Facts. (USDA)
• Close to 100% of the halibut landed in the U.S. is Pacific halibut. The main sources for Pacific halibut are the U.S. and Canada.

Mahi-mahi (Dolphinfish) (Coryphaena hippurus)

• Population status is not formally assessed but is assumed to be stable. No overfishing appears to be occurring.
• Size and harvest restrictions have been implemented in the Atlantic to ensure that the U.S. fishery remains stable. Catch trends in the Pacific have indicated that specific management measures for dolphinfish are not yet necessary.
• Dolphinfish is low in saturated fat and is a good source of vitamin B12, phosphorus, and potassium and a very good source of protein, niacin, vitamin B6, and selenium. For more on nutrition, see Nutrition Facts. (USDA)
• Dolphinfish is not related to dolphin the mammal. Dolphinfish is called mahi-mahi in the Pacific, and that name is often used when marketing the species at the retail and restaurant level.

North Atlantic Swordfish (Xiphias gladius)

• U.S. North Atlantic swordfish population levels are high and overfishing is not currently occurring on the stock.
• Strict federal fisheries management measures are improving the condition of the fishery, and a fishing industry/NOAA partnership is successfully reducing sea turtle bycatch.
• Swordfish is an excellent source of selenium, niacin, and vitamin B12 and a good source of zinc. Swordfish may contain amounts of methylmercury in excess of the FDA’s recommended limit for moms, moms-to-be, and young children. For more information, see EPA and FDA advice on what you need to know about mercury in fish and shellfish.
• About a third of the swordfish caught in U.S. commercial fisheries in 2008 came from the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico; the rest was Pacific swordfish, where population levels are also high. The United States also imports swordfish, mainly from Canada, Singapore, Panama, and Ecuador.