Despite the adage, there might not always be “plenty more fish in the sea”. But by choosing to purchase seafood that has been caught sustainably, you can help to ensure the long-term wellbeing of our oceans. This way, the seafood species that we know and love can continue to survive and thrive in healthy marine ecosystems.

Know a sustainable fisher? Nominate them in the 2024 delicious. Harvey Norman Produce Awards now 

What is sustainable fishing?

Sustainable fishing is responsible fishing. It means using methods that cause the least harm and promote the most biodiversity. “It demands quality over quantity,” says chef Josh Niland, who is world-renowned for his sustainable ‘fin-to-tail’ approach to seafood. “We should be catching fish in a more intentional manner. Produce Awards-winners Luke Buchholz [Nautical Wholesale Seafood], Chris Bolton, Ben Collison – they all go out on small vessels, throw in a line and pull out fish one at a time. Or we net fish, but we grade the net to a specific size to target a specific fish, rather than just putting in a really fine net and dragging everything out. It’s being more intentional around the species we target, rather than just generating a huge quantity we can ship to market.”

What about aquaculture?

Aquaculture has had a bad rap, but it is a growing industry, and it can be a sustainable one. 2022 Producer of the Year Rocky Point Aquaculture uses inland lakes to sustainably farm cobia, speckled blue grouper and Queensland grouper. Each fish is individually line caught, waters are kept clean via filtration systems using fish and algae (and soon, oysters and mangroves) and fish are packaged in environmentally friendly materials. Even fish feed is sourced from a leading sustainable supplier. “I choose to be on this path of continuous improvement, because there’s the basic question of social licence,” says Serena Zipf, Rocky Point owner-operator. “We all want our children and grandchildren to be able to enjoy the oceans that we did, growing up in Australia.”

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How can I source sustainable seafood at the market or fishmonger?

“It all comes back to communication with the people you’re buying from,” Niland says. “You see a great-looking fish, then you ask questions about it. And if they’re able to say, ‘That’s from Bundaberg, it’s from such-and-such-a-guy’, then you know they know their product. Or you ask, ‘What got you excited this morning?’ And usually, somebody who’s woken up at 1:30am to procure the best-in-class product for the day will care enough to want to tell you that the mangrove jack over there is outstanding. Right away, you’ve got a leg up. You’re going to experience something you’ve maybe never tried before. You’ve got a great, sustainable product and you’ve started to build trust with who you buy from.”

How can I choose sustainable seafood when dining out?

A quick look at the menu should do it, says Alex Prichard, head chef at the iconic Bondi Icebergs: “It shouldn’t just say ‘barramundi’, or ‘snapper’. With beef, no menu just has ‘beef fillet’. It’s just not a thing. It’s Rangers Valley, or Westholme or Blackmore. You want to look for the places that are consistently changing the fish on their menu. What that shows you is a chef who isn’t just ordering the same thing, day in and day out, regardless of where it came from.” Niland agrees, saying that if you’re dining at a restaurant and paying a premium for it, you should be allowed to know what you’re eating. “Otherwise, hypothetically we’re just signing up for something that’s coming out of Southeast Asia, with an unknown reference point. At the end of the day, we all just want some transparency.”

Know a sustainable fisher? Nominate them in the 2024 delicious. Harvey Norman Produce Awards now