A Transnational Industry
The seafood industry has become an international market. Products travel thousands of miles to sustain the global patterns of seafood consumption. For seafood lovers, this means you can enjoy Japanese scallops or Mediterranean octopuses while sitting in a local San Francisco restaurant. While on the consumer end this may sound great, crossing international borders complicates things in terms of sustainability and food safety.
Transparency
The biggest problem when receiving seafood across international borders is the lack of transparency about how the product was processed, harvested, or caught. Many countries do not recognize the same standards of sustainability or safety as we try to uphold here in the United States. To help shed light on some of these problems, programs such as the Monterey Seafood Watch, Marine Stewardship Council and Fish Choice have dedicated themselves to creating tools which help navigate seafood sustainability and creating healthier oceans.
Traceability
At Royal Hawaiian Seafood, we encourage everyone to pose the question “Where does this fish (shellfish, cephalopods, etc.,) come from?”. Whether you are at a restaurant, fish monger, or buying products directly from us here at Royal Hawaiian Seafood, beginning the conversation with the location of the fish opens the doors to a wealth of information about the terms of sustainability. Knowing the location of where the product was caught more times than not can tell you if it is responsibly harvested. Once you have the location of origin, programs such as the Monterey Seafood Watch program can give you information about the catch method, feed, and stock levels.
The essential question
We know it is not always easy to remember to ask specifics (especially when hungry and waiting for food). That is why, when buying from Royal Hawaiian Seafood we do the work for you! Our team are works directly with the producers to oversee and approve the aquacultural and fishery operations from which we get our fish. We do extensive research to ensure that every product we offer is safe, sustainable, tested, and traceable.