"fish" news and stories

There's more grim news coming out of Japan this morning as officials there widen the evacuation band near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant over concerns that additional radiation may leak from the damaged facility. Earlier this week, Tokyo parents were warned not to give infants tap water, which has tested positive for radioactive iodine; and despite import bans, some Japanese vegetables that have tested positive for radiation found their way to Singapore.

Radiation fears are also migrating to seafood. Japanese officials said they have detected higher levels of radiation in ocean waters near the damaged nuclear power plant, fueling fears on the impact this may have on Japan's fishing industry. The catastrophe has left the famed Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo reeling.

Should the situation at the Fukushima plant worsen, the fallout from the disaster could have complications for some of our own seafood. Philadelphia science blogger Bix Webber posted a troubling graphic on her website earlier this week: a New York Times interactive map that shows travel projections should a plume of radiation head east towards the U.S. Underneath it, Webber shows another graphic illustrating the migratory patterns for Pacific salmon. They're eerily similar.

Which leaves us with the money question: Could salmon stocks (and other species) be impacted should the situation worsen in Japan?

It's that time of year again, the 40-day Christian season of Lent, a time when fast food restaurants ramp up their seafood menu selections to capitalize on religious dogma -- hell, even KFC plays up their Fish Snacker. The rules of the season mandate that no meat is to be eaten on Fridays -- vegetarians need not change their eating habits -- but to the observant carnivorous fast foodie, this usually means replacing those burgers and fries with fish and chips. Wendy's heeds this call, and has jumped back on the bandwagon this year, offering a Premium Fish Fillet sandwich to fill this religious niche. Here's how it rates:

The Claims: Wendy's Premium Fish Fillet is 100% North Pacific cod breaded with panko crumbs, served in a bun with a leaf of lettuce and tartar sauce (500 calories). A slice of American cheese is optional (for an additional 40 calories).

The Price: $3.99 for the sandwich, plus an extra 30 cents if you want cheese. Add their natural-cut fries to make it a "fish 'n chips" combo with a drink for $5.99. (Prices may vary at participating locations.)

Time to tuck away those shiny Mardi Gras beads. Lent is officially underway, and for many observant eaters, that means several fish-focused Fridays. Lucky for you, we found some folks offering tasty specials where the spotlight shines only on sustainable seafood. That makes it easy to leave your guilty conscience at home.

While Wisconsin throws a mighty tasty fish-fry, they're not the only ones. At Jackson 20 in Alexandria, Va., chef Dennis Marron says they're adding U.S. farmed channel catfish to their traditional fried chicken offering during Lent, making it "Fryday". (He said it, not us!) "We try and stay true to our Southern-influenced concept, and we like to get our fish from as close to home as possible. We track our carbon "fish-print"," he says. The catfish he serves is raised in closed containment systems and fed a mostly vegetarian diet which garners it a Seafood Watch best choice rating. Pass the tarter sauce, would ya?

While Louisville is deep in the heart of the fried-food South, chef Edward Lee of 610 Magnolia steers clear of a fryolator. His Fruits de Maine is a play on the traditional French dish, fruits de mer. "We try and embody the entire North Atlantic in one dish by incorporating four or five different seafood items from the coast of Maine." Depending on what Maine fishermen bring in each week, that could mean line-caught cod, Maine lobster or fresh clams.

Other chefs are making thoughtful choices too.

Just as worldwide fish consumption has reached an all time high, a bevy of new labels are in the works to provide consumers with even more information about the seafood they're buying. Whether that will clarify fish-buying decisions or muddle an already complicated purchase remains to be seen.

Starting in April, Fair Trade International -- the same folks who certify items like coffee, tea, cocoa and bananas -- will begin work to establish standards for small-scale shrimp farmers, mostly located in Southeast Asia, where roughly 70 percent of farmed shrimp is produced.

While officials have been feverishly trying to keep the dreaded Asian carp from making its way into the Great Lakes -- using tactics that range from poisoning to electric blockades -- scientists now say that the tiny quagga mussel has already done the damage. The mussel is causing unprecedented changes in the lower food web in Lake Michigan, perhaps making the territory inhospitable to the voracious carp.

"It's estimated that there are over 500 trillion dreissenids (freshwater mussels) currently in Lake Michigan," says Gary Fahnenstiel, senior ecologist for NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in an interview with Slashfood.

The thumbnail-sized striped quagga mussel is a filter feeder. They were first spotted in Lake Michigan in the early 2000s, likely finding their way there in the ballast tanks of ships originating in the Caspian Sea. As their population continues to grow, quagga mussels have significantly decreased the amount of phytoplankton in the water. That plankton forms the basis of the food chain, which supports native species like lake whitefish, deepwater sculpin and alewives.

"The water has never been clearer in Lake Michigan," says Fahnenstiel.