Good Fish Guide

Abalone

Haliotis discus hannai; Haliotis tuberculata

Abalone can be farmed on land in aquaculture systems that are enclosed, referred to as "recirculating systems", which means that all water and waste are contained. Abalone graze on seaweeds for food. As there are no environmental … Read more interactions and no depletion of resources for food this makes abalone a really sustainable seafood choice.

Anchovy, anchovies

Engraulis encrasicolus

As an oily fish, their strong flavour is used to add a kick to many dishes and sauces, including Worcestershire Sauce, and they are widely used in Mediterranean cooking. Anchovy fillets are generally packed in oil or salt and sold in jars … Read more or tins. Often used as a topping for pizza, caesar salads or just on toast. Also in paste or rolled and accompanied with other foods such as olives. Anchovy can also be processed into fish meal.They are small green fish with a silver stripe that gives them a bluish hue. A relative of the herring, they are a short-lived, schooling fish feeding on small fry (recently hatched fish) and plankton at the bottom of the food-chain.

The Bay of Biscay fishery is a sustainable choice. The Cantabrian Sea (Bay of Biscay) purse seine anchovy fishery is certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) as sustainable. Anchovy are a species with a low vulnerability and high resilience and as such can sustain high levels of fishing pressure. However, recruitment of young fish to the stock is affected by environmental factors including climatic fluctuations. If recruitment is low and fishing pressure too high the stock becomes vulnerable to collapse. Anchovy are also a species at or near the base of the food chain and the impact of their large-scale removal on the marine ecosystem is poorly understood.

Arctic char

Salvelinus alpinus

Land based farmed Arctic char is a good choice to make when looking for an oily fish. The use of land based production systems addresses many issues of environmental concern that can be associated with farmed fish production. Artic charr … Read more has a lower requirement for fish in its diet compared to other salmonid species and in UK and Icelandic production responsibly sourced feed is used.

Basa, Tra, Catfish or Vietnamese River Cobbler

Pangasius bocourti & Pangasius hypophthalmus

Pangasius farmed to Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certified production standards is currently the best choice to make for this farmed species. The ASC standard certification addresses a number of issues of environmental concern, … Read more the auditing of which requires farm inspections and standard enforcement. In general there are a number of issues of environmental concern associated with production, these include: habitat alteration; nutrient and organic pollution; escapes; interactions with local wildlife and enforcement of regulations. Pangasius is a an omnivore and as such is not heavily reliant on marine proteins and oils to form part of its diet, however the fish used to produce the feed is currently not certified as being responsibly managed or sustainable.

Bass, seabass (Caught at sea)

Dicentrarchus labrax

The combination of slow growth, late maturity, spawning aggregation, and strong summer site fidelity, plus high value of this species make it vulnerable over-exploitation and localised depletion and so needs to be carefully managed. The … Read more main seabass stock around the UK was heavily overfished but improvements to management in recent years have reduced fishing pressure and it is hoped these are maintained so the stock can recover to healthy levels. There remain issues regarding accurate data collection and compliance with management measures. Farmed seabass can be a better choice. Seabass are generally farmed in open sea pens and are fed a diet reliant on wild fish capture as a key ingredient, so look for independently certified (ASC, GlobalGap, GAA BAP 3*4) options which have addressed some of these issues.

Bass, seabass (Farmed)

Dicentrarchus labrax

The combination of slow growth, late maturity, spawning aggregation, and strong summer site fidelity, plus high value of this species make it vulnerable over-exploitation and localised depletion and so needs to be carefully managed. The … Read more main seabass stock around the UK was heavily overfished but improvements to management in recent years have reduced fishing pressure and it is hoped these are maintained so the stock can recover to healthy levels. There remain issues regarding accurate data collection and compliance with management measures. Farmed seabass can be a better choice. Seabass are generally farmed in open sea pens and are fed a diet reliant on wild fish capture as a key ingredient, so look for independently certified (ASC, GlobalGap, GAA BAP 3*4) options which have addressed some of these issues.

Bream, Black or porgy or seabream

Spondyliosoma cantharus

Seabream are a group of compact, medium-sized fishes known as Sparidae. Their firm white meat is similar in taste and texture to bass and is ideal for grilling, steaming, baking and pan-frying whole. Black bream or porgy are commonly found … Read more in northern European seas and are commercially fished. However the bulk of the seabream in the UK market comes from imports of Mediterranean farmed gilthead bream. Black bream is a pretty inexpensive fish to eat as it's not massively popular despite the fact it's delicious. Its taste is distinctive and on the sweet side so best grilled or stuffed and baked whole (after removing its scales). Fascinating fact - Black bream all mature as females at around 20cm; but once they reach about 30cm they may change into males and all fish over 40cms are males! They lay their eggs in nests which males excavate with their tails and guard against predators.

Black seabream are vulnerable to overfishing because they change sex during their lives, they aggregate to spawn (and therefore are easier to catch) and are very picky about where they lay eggs. Look up The Black Bream Project for further details. More management is needed to protect the species. If choosing Black seabream, choose it from the Sussex IFCA district, who have implemented better management.

Bream, Gilthead (Caught at sea)

Sparus auratus

Bream, Gilthead (Farmed)

Sparus auratus

European Union and Turkey are the biggest producers of sea bass in Europe followed by Egypt, Spain and Italy. In recent years it has been the second fastest growing species in terms of sales, after pangasius. Seabass are farmed in open … Read more sea pens and are fed a diet reliant on wild fish capture. Look for certified sea bass, such as the Aquaculture Stewardship Council logo on pack, as this means much of the impacts of production have been addressed.

Brill

Scophthalmus rhombus

Brill in these regions is mainly landed as bycatch in beam trawl and pulse trawl fisheries for plaice and sole, particularly in the North Sea. Although data-limited, it would appear that the population is not subject to overfishing and is … Read more not in an overfished state. Management measures are combined with those for turbot, which prevents effective control and could lead to high grading of the lower value species (brill) or overexploitation of turbot. Despite this, catches of brill in recent years have been below the recommended level. Avoid eating immature brill (less than 30cm) and during their breeding time in spring and summer.

Clam, Manila (Farmed)

Ruditapes philippinarium

All Manila clams in the UK are progeny of broodstock imported from the west coast of USA. They are grown in trays on trestles in the sea before planting out in ground plots or seabed. Only a small number of Manila clams are farmed for the … Read more table in UK (5 tonnes, 2012), the biggest production is seed for ongrowing. Clams may be harvested by manual digging or raking, or by mechanical methods, e.g. suction or hydraulic dredge. Manual harvesting methods cause less disturbance to sediment than mechanical methods. Shellfish farming is a low-impact method of producing farmed seafood and high quality water standards are required for cultivation of shellfish for human consumption.

Clam, Razor, clams

Ensis spp.

Razor clam populations around the UK are not well understood. They have slow growth rates and their populations take a long time to recover. Large-scale harvesting by dredging or electrofishing could cause population sizes to decline, as … Read more well as have wider environmental impacts. The only recommended choice is razor clams caught by hand-gathering. Avoid eating undersized animals (less than 10cm) and wild clams harvested during the spawning season (May - September).

Cockle, cockles

Cerastoderma edule

Best boiled then seasoned with malt vinegar and pepper, they are often pickled but also sold in a sealed packet to eat on the go. A traditional Welsh breakfast is cockles fried with bacon and served with laver bread. Cockles have … Read more distinctive rounded shells that are slightly heart shaped. It is a bivalve (two identical shells) belonging to the family Cardidae meaning 'heart-shaped'. They can jump by bending and straightening the foot - the end bit- which is often coloured red and called the 'red nose'.

Choose Marine Stewardship Council-certified cockles or from well-managed inshore fisheries such as the Wash. Avoid eating them during their breeding season from March to July.

Cod, Atlantic Cod

Gadus morhua

There are a many different Atlantic cod populations and whilst some are being well managed and are in a healthy state, many others are in a poor state, particularly around the UK. Many of the well managed fisheries are certified as … Read more sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) which can be identified in shops and on menus by a blue ecolabel with a white tick. Avoid eating cod from stocks which are depleted and where fishing is at unsustainable levels.

Cod, Pacific Cod

Gadus macrocephalus

Pacific cod is fished throughout the east and west North Pacific Ocean in both targeted and non-targeted fisheries, using a range of gear types, including: demersal trawl, gill net, seine and longline. The best options are the fisheries … Read more that have been certified against the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) standard.