A couple of weeks ago I heard a report on the BBC World Service about bluefin tuna. Apparently, the population has greatly diminished due to its growing popularity, especially among sushi-lovers. The World Wildlife Fund and other environmental groups are trying to spead the word about bluefin overfishing, so that people interested in sustainable consumption can stop eating it. Read more in this article.

I plan to cut bluefin out of my diet for now, despite my love of fresh tuna sushi. After all, tuna is known to have high mercury levels as well, so it won't be so bad to stop eating it for a while.

Speaking of sustainable eating and delicious seafood, Oceans Alive, a division of Environmental Defense, has a new Pocket Seafood Selector available. If you follow this link, it will take you to a PDF of the wallet-sized list of "good" and "bad" fish. Print it out, fold it up and you're good to go.

I used the Seafood Selector on my trip to San Diego last week. It was quite helpful since I went out to several nice dinners at seafood restaurants. The "bad" side of the list indicates which fish are in danger due to over-fishing, as well as which fish may have high levels of mercury or PCBs. The "good" side of the list indicates fish that are considered the most sustainable choices and which fish contain beneficial omega-3 fatty acids. I think the new strategy is to convince people that eco-friendly fish are also good for your health. That seems smart.

Down in San Diego, my coworkers had a good time teasing me about my Seafood Selector, but I didn't mind. Even when they're making fun of me, we're still having a conversation about sustainable eating.

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