Hook, Line, and Sinker

It tastes great and is good for you, but it’s also important to buy seafood that’s been harvested responsibly for your own safety and in order to make sure there’s going to be more in the future. 

Below is a quick guide:

Canned and preserved fish

Recommended

Good, but some concerns

Avoid
  • Albacore Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Herring
  • Lake Whitefish (Trap net)*
  • Pilchard/Sardines (US)
  • Skipjack tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Albacore Tuna*
  • Bigeye Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Salmon (US, wild)*
  • Skipjack tuna*
  • Yellowfin Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Albacore Tuna (Imported, longline)*
  • Atlantic Cod
  • Bluefin Tuna*
  • Bigeye Tuna (Longline)*
  • Salmon (Atlantic, farmed)*
  • Tongol Tuna
  • Yellowfin Tuna (Longline)

Whole Fish / Fillets / Steaks

Recommended

Good, but some concerns

Avoid
  • Arctic Char (Farmed)
  • Atlantic Croaker*
  • Barramundi (US, farmed)
  • Black Rockfish (US)
  • Black Cod/Sablefish (Alaska, Canada)
  • Catfish (US, farmed)
  • Cobia (US, farmed)
  • Herring
  • Pacific Cod (Alaska, wild)
  • Pacific Halibut
  • Pilchard/Sardines (US)
  • Pollock (Alaska, wild)
  • Rainbow Trout (Farmed)
  • Salmon (Alaska, wild)
  • Sardines (US)
  • Striped Bass*
  • Tilapia (US, farmed)
  • White Seabass
  • Wreckfish
  • Yellow Perch
  • Atlantic Herring
  • Basa/Swai (Farmed)
  • Bigeye Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Bigscale Pomfret
  • Black Sea Bass
  • Bluefish*
  • Dolphinfish/Mahi Mahi
  • Flounder (Pacific)
  • Grey Snapper
  • Grouper*
  • Halibut (US)
  • Lake Herring
  • Lane Snapper
  • Lingcod*
  • Moonfish*
  • Mutton Snapper*
  • Rainbow Smelt
  • Red Snapper
  • Rockfish (Pacific, hook & line)
  • Ruby Snapper
  • Pacific Cod (US, trawled)
  • Pacific Sanddab
  • Pink Snapper
  • Salmon (US, wild)*
  • Scup/Porgy
  • Sole (Pacific)
  • Swordfish (US, Canada, if taken by harpoon or fishing line)*
  • Talapia (Central America, farmed)
  • Yellowfin Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Yellowtail (US, farmed)
  • Whitefish*
  • Walleye*
  • Wahoo Fish*
  • Albacore Tuna (Imported, longline)*
  • Atlantic Cod
  • Bigeye Tuna (Longline)*
  • Blue Marlin*
  • Chilean
  • Cobia (Imported, farmed)
  • Dogfish (US)*
  • Dolphinfish/Mahi Mahi (Imported)
  • Flounder (Atlantic)
  • Grenadier/Pacific Roughy
  • Halibut (Atlantic)
  • Monkfish*
  • Orange Roughy*
  • Pacific Cod (Imported)
  • Pompano
  • Rockfish (Pacific, trawled)*
  • Salmon (Atlantic, farmed)*
  • Seabass/Patagonian Toothfish*
  • Sole (Atlantic)
  • Sharks*
  • Skates
  • Spearfish (Imported)
  • Striped Marlin*
  • Swordfish (Imported)*
  • Talapia (Asia, farmed)
  • Tilefish*
  • Totoaba
  • Trout (Great Lakes)*
  • Vermillion Snapper
  • White Hake
  • Wolf Fish
  • Yellowfin (Longline)*
  • Yellowtail (Imported, farmed)

Sushi

Recommended

Good, but some concerns

Avoid

  • Amabei/Spot Prawn
  • Awabi/Abalone (US, Farmed)
  • Clams (Farmed)
  • Gindara/Sablefish/Black Cod (AK, BC)
  • Hotate/Scallops (Farmed)
  • Ikura/Salmon Roe (AK, wild)
  • Iwana/Arctic Char (Farmed)
  • Iwashi/Pacific Sardines (US)
  • Izumidai/Tilapia (US, farmed)
  • Kaki/Oysters (Farmed)
  • Kanikama/Surimi/Imitation Crab
    (AK Pollock)
  • Katsuo/Bonito/Skipjack tuna
    (Troll net or pole)*
  • Masago/Smelt Roe (Iceland)
  • Mirugai/Giant Clam/Geoduck (Farmed)
  • Sake/Salmon (AK, wild)
  • Sawara/Spanish Mackerel (US)*
  • Shiro Maguro/Albacore Tuna
    (US, Canada, Troll net or pole)*
  • Suzuki/Striped Bass*
  • Uni/Sea Urchin Roe (Canada)
  • Ebi/Shrimp (US, Canada)
  • Hirame/Karei/Flounder (Pacific)
  • Hirame/Karei/Sole (Pacific)
  • Hotate/Scallops (Wild) 
  • Kampachi/Yellowtail (US, farmed)
  • Kani/Blue Crab*
  • Kani/King Crab (US)
  • Kani/Snow Crab
  • Kanikama/Surimi/Imitation Crab
  • Maguro/Bigeye Tuna
    (Troll net or pole)*
  • Maguro/Yellowfin Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Masago/Smelt Roe (Canada)
  • Sake/Salmon (Wild)
  • Shiro Maguro/Albacore Tuna (US)*
  • Squid
  • Tai/ Scup/Porgy (US)
  • Toro/Bigeye Tuna (Troll net or pole)*
  • Toro/Yellowfin Tuna
    (Troll net or pole)*
  • Uni/Sea Urchin Roe (US)
  • Ankimo/Monkfish Liver
  • Ankoh/Monkfish
  • Ebi/Shrimp (Imported)
  • Hamachi/Hiramasa/Yellowtail
    (Imported, farmed)
  • Hirame/Karei/Flounder (Atlantic)
  • Hirame/Karei/Sole (Atlantic)
  • Hon Maguro/Bluefin Tuna*
  • Izumidai/Tilapia (Asia, farmed)
  • Kani/King Crab (Imported)
  • Maguro/Bigeye Tuna*
  • Maguro/Yellowfin Tuna*
  • Sake/Salmon (Atlantic, farmed)
  • Shiro Maguro/Albacore Tuna (Imported)*
  • Tai/Red Snapper
  • Tako/Octopus
  • Toro/Bigeye Tuna*
  • Toro/Bluefin Tuna*
  • Toro/Yellowfin Tuna*
  • Unagi/Freshwater Eel

Fish and Chips

Recommended

Good, but some concerns

Avoid

  • Black Cod/Sablefish (Alaska, Canada)
  • Catfish (US, farmed)
  • Coley
  • Hake
  • Plaice
  • Pacific Cod (Alaska, wild)
  • Pacific Halibut
  • Pollock (Alaska, wild)
  • Whiting
  • Basa/Swai (Farmed)
  • Flounder (Pacific)
  • Sole (Pacific)
  • Atlantic Cod
  • Dogfish
  • Shark*
  • Skate*
  • Tilefish*

Shellfish

Recommended

Good, but some concerns

Avoid
  • Abalone (Farmed)
  • Clams (Farmed)
  • Dungeness Crab
  • Geoduck Clam (Wild)
  • Longfin Squid
  • Mussels (Farmed)
  • Oysters (Farmed)
  • Scallops (Farmed)
  • Spiny Lobster (US)
  • Stone Crab
  • American Lobster
  • Atlantic Surf Clams (Wild)
  • Blue Crab*
  • Hard Clams (Wild)
  • King Crab (US)
  • Ocean Quahog (Wild)
  • Octopus
  • Oysters (Wild)*
  • Scallops (Wild)
  • Shrimp (US, Canada)
  • Snow Crab
  • Spot Prawn (US)
  • Squid
  • King Crab (Imported)
  • Queen Conch
  • Shrimp (Imported)
  • Spiny Lobster (Caribbean)

Appetizers

Recommended

Good, but some concerns

Avoid
  • Clams (Farmed)
  • Dungeness Crab
  • Longfin Squid
  • Mussels (Farmed)
  • Oysters (Farmed)
  • Scallops (Farmed)
  • Sturgeon Caviar (US, farmed)
  • Sturgeon Caviar (Wild)*

* Limit consumption due to mercury

General Rules: 

  1. Try to eat lower on the food chain if possible. Species such as jellyfish, clams and smelt reproduce quickly and have more sustainable fisheries. Species such as sharks, tilefish and sturgeon take a long time to reproduce and are often illegally and unsustainably harvested. What’s more, bigger, older predatory and long lived fish have had more time to build up toxins and harmful chemicals in their bodies (to learn more about bioaccumulation, click here)

  2. Check the label to determine the country of origin and try to eat locally if possible. Fisheries in more developed countries such as North America and the EU tend to have better environmental and safety regulations and enforcement. Alaska is considered to have one of the best fishery standards in the world.

  3. The method of raising and harvesting is just as important as the species in sustainability. Fish farmed in open ocean pens and fed growth supplements can be just as environmentally damaging as wild fish caught by nets dragged on the ocean floor.

Need information on a species that isn’t listed? Ask The Fish Doctor