Do I Dare to Eat a Shrimp?
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 02.27.07
We had a bloggers night out on Friday during the Interior Design Show, with Harry Wakefield of Mocoloco, Robert Oullette and Sarah of ReadingToronto , my spouse Kelly of Up with the Lark at Toronto's Izakaya Restaurant. (A new record: Five conflicts of interest in one post!) A problem of writing for TreeHugger too much is that one becomes a bit of a pompous know-it-all, so when Harry ordered shrimp shao mai I had to point out the issues with it. This month's Gourmet Magazine,not the greenest of publications, calls farmed shrimp "one of the most destructive means by which humans produce food. Shrimp farmers clear cut vast coastal fringes of mangroves,-crucial breeding grounds for fish- to create ponds....As rotting shrimp and food pollute the water they move on and hack down more trees and make more ponds" They also pump them full of antibiotics.
Gourmet suggests that American wild shrimp are fine, but the problem is the by-catch- it used to be up to ten pounds of unwanted sharks, sea turtles, flounder and other fish for every pound of shrimp were caught. However the diversity and density of the fish stocks have deteriorated so much that good fishermen have reduced the bycatch to about two pounds, mostly jellyfish.
Another surprising source of information is the political blog Daily Kos, where Mark H is much harsher about bycatch- "So, what happens to the bycatch? In general, after all the shrimp have been picked out of the giant pile of biomass on the deck and quickly frozen to preserve them, the crew shovels or hose-sprays the rest of the catch overboard. Pretty much nothing survives. Of course, because the bycatch is left dead and dying at the bottom of the sea these animals are basically out of sight, out of mind. Imagine the outrage if a hunter searching for a deer killed nearly every bird, mammal, reptile and insect in his path. And simply left them lying dead on the ground. You get the picture."
There are a few sustainable sources of shrimp- Gei Wai from Hong Kong, or Ocean Boy Farms in Florida, but they are not going to be found in your local restaurant or supermarket. So Harry, hands off the shrimp. ::Daily Kos
OK, no more shrimp for me (sigh), I'm now one step closer to vegetarianism. For the record I had no idea shrimp farming/harvesting was so destructive and wasteful. Just out of curiosity, is there anyone who farms/harvests shrimp in a sustainable way?
Hi Harry,
There are a few sustainable harvesters, but they are few and far between.
But if you still want to enjoy seafood, check out lists like the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch. I personally love fish, shrimp, crabs and all the like, and I've found that mostly, it's possible to enjoy it responsibly.
http://www.mbayaq.org/cr/SeafoodWatch/web/sfw_factsheet.aspx
Of course, I suppose vegetarianism is the most "eco" way to go... esp, if it's local and organic... but well, I'm too much of an epicurean, i guess. My chinese upbringing makes me want to eat EVERYTHING.
Actually, swearing off shrimp won't do much good. The real solution is to entice shrimp farmers worldwide to farm in a more ecologically-friendly manner. The Global Aquaculture Alliance is an organization whose mission is to do just that. Together with the Aquaculture Certification Council, they are helping to make international shrimp farming sustainable.
The mangrove forests that shimp farming destroy are also important buffers against tsunamis.
See Shrimp and Tsunamis
http://veg.ca/content/view/138/111/
“Industrial shrimp aquaculture is one of the main reasons for the destruction of coastal mangrove forests. These wilderness areas act as a natural buffer against stormy weather. Areas with intact mangrove zones suffered fewer human deaths due to the Dec 2004 tsunamis.
The tsunami disaster that occurred in the Indian Ocean is beyond comprehension – over 200,000 people dead, scores more injured, and massive destruction. Earthquakes and tsunamis are unavoidable, but the severity of this disaster could have been greatly lessened had healthy mangrove forests and coral reefs been conserved along these now devastated coastlines. Instead, these vital protective buffers known for reducing flood and storm damage, have been uprooted for unsustainable developments such as industrial shrimp aquaculture, tourism and urban expansion.“
Brian, why not do both? Boycott shrimp and work for better conditions.
The happy shrimp company is a ecological tropical shrimp farm that makes use of waste heat available from a powerplant. You can find more information about the concept on www.happyshrimp.nl
Exactly Roy! I am a big fan of Happy Shrimp. The first ones are supposed to be on the market at the end of this year, we keep you posted. More here: http://www.treehugger.com/files/2006/08/happy_shrimp_fr.php
Check out Desert Sweet Shrimp at http://www.desertsweetshrimp.com for a healthier alternative to ocean-raised shrimp. They pond raise shrimp in the Arizona desert in a sustainable, healthy manner, and they don't need to be shipped as far if you live in the US. No, I don't work for them, but I do eat their shrimp in the cafeteria at work fairly regularly and they are delicious.