I have always been aware of the issue of overfishing and the sensitivity of the sea, but I had assumed in my naivety that the EU policies were protecting fish stocks. Then last year I watched Fish Fight and realised that this is being terribly badly managed and fish stocks are in genuine decline.

Part of me wishes that I didn't know.....as I stand in front of the Coop fish counter wanting desperately to buy those juicy, white flakes of cod or that gleaming ruby tuna......I can no longer morally bring myself to do it, instead choosing something less tasty with the MSC certification or some locally produced tropical fish or sturgeon (I kid you not)

Has anybody else significantly changed what they eat for environmental reasons only? I can't bring myself to become veggie although I know that the production of meat is way less efficient than if I just ate the cattlefeed directly!

I stopped eating fish for the most part years ago after watching a documentary on overfishing all over the world and also because, given the pollution of the oceans, it just didn't seem a good thing to ingest. I can't imagine eating gulf shrimp these days, but still they are out there fishing for them and folks are buying them and eating them.

There are too many whose livelihood depend on fishing and I fear that it will have to get well past the point of dire before anything changes.

Through the influence of some friends who were fantastic vegetarian cooks, I stopped eating meat a long time ago, simply because I felt so much better and lighter, no guilt or fear of chemicals about it. I sometimes have fish in a restaurant, never at home, that's it.

I'm not a huge fish-eater in general. Shellfish look too much like bugs to me, and most of the fish I do eat (salmon, tilapia, and the occaisional tuna steak) can be farmed, so I don't feel that I personally don't make much of an impact, either way.

Since I've moved to Switzerland, I've eaten less meat, but more cheese, and probably just as many fruits and vegetables.

Thank you for bringing this up!!

It's been many years since I've eaten fish if I can help it & that's very difficult for a Portuguese person! But what they are doing to the oceans just breaks my heart.

Last time I was in Italy we went down to the sea to get anchovies & were shocked to be told there were none that year. It was the first time there had not been enough anchovies.

The other thing that makes me mad is that in the Azores we eat limpets. But there are almost none left. So what happens? Instead of people respecting the ban, they tell you where the "secret restaurant" is that serves them!!! Grrrrr!

I've never eaten fish. There are only two things that taste of fish and one of them is fish.

Fish is food why stop eating it. I say fix the problem you really have. The regulation obviously is not working.

When they fix the problem, then I will eat it again. Until then I won't. There is plenty of other food not in the sea!

Yes, indeed.

I now eat much more fish than I ever did in CH. (Egli,ffs )

Also a shed-more lobster and langoustine.

Costs slightly less than a bit of cheap chicken does in CH (on the occasions I actually do pay).

But then, I get most of it from a mate who's a professional fisherman, so I know it's from managed stocks.

I love fish, seafish more than (for me) rather bland fresh water fish, practically everything that flops and swims to boot, if it is edible Slammer can cook it.
However I have reservations over farmed fish out of places like Thailand, china and India as the side effects are worst than the open sea fishing.
Eating fish here is Europe has at least some control and if the EU fishing rules are implememted fully then stocks should recover over time.
You can make a choice by looking closely at the packages where the fish is from so don´t deny yourself a good fish dinner.

I know the "other" one

Smart kid for your age.

We tend to only eat local lake fish here but when I am in the U.K., we have fresh (never frozen) fish caught by sustainable methods.

So we do have less fish here than we did back in the U.K. which is a shame.

heh...heh. How did you guess how old I was

With the poor quality of fish here in Switz, not to mention the incredible price, I have basically quit it. In Ireland I was eating fish at least 4 times a week.

The problem is that with overfishing there is basically no point in eating fish anymore. The precious Omega-3 are now almost absents, turning fish into a canonical protein source.

I suggest having some kind of O-3 integrator (I personally use A-M B-Well) and just eat the animal proteins you like.

Well, overfishing is a problem, on top of all the farming that's done as well...When you have to dye Salmon pink because they stay grey in farms, it's time to rethink the value of overdoing it

I love fish but it is hard (And expensive) to come by...My father in law fishes for perch in Lac Leman...Provides enough for filet perche for several months

When I was still in the US, there were several sustainable fish scales being introduced throughout to encourage consumers to avoid overfished species...I hope that makes a dent in things

You sniggered when sex was implied...

Well, certain fish are currently sustainable such as mackrel (Scombridae) are extremely good for you. Sounds like you never had kippers for breakfast. Yum.
The health benefits are huge. As I say, fix the issue behind the problem. The other way round hardly ever works.

BTW. If you believe every conflicting communication that comes out of the media such as Coffee bad, coffee good, wine bad, wine good, chocolate bad, chocolate good etc You will be confused and a food freak. Common sense prevails. Well I hope. I eat most things and try everything. Sea slug after tasting...not good.

I'm pretty certain thats not really the point. I agree with you about health concerns eg red wine decreases risk of heart attack by 1% etc etc. All this stuff is pretty marginal or arguable.

What I'm referring to is more ethical or moral issues which can be a bit more subjective. I never read an "Overfishing the Oceans is Good" article