It is said that you can’t experience real New Orleans cuisine without seafood. Our production of shrimp, oysters, crawfish, crab, and fish make Louisiana the nation’s second largest seafood supplier. However, there is a dark side to this big catch that may make you rethink your seafood consumption; commercial fishing is the greatest threat to marine wildlife.
Commercial fishing has wiped out 90% of the world’s largest fish and kills 300,000 dolphins, whales, and porpoises every year. Practices like bottom trawling, long-line fishing, and disposing of fishing gear in the ocean causes unimaginable damage to the ocean and its inhabitants.
Fortunately, there are ways we can advocate for safer and more sustainable seafood consumption
Support the G.U.L.F (Gulf United for Lasting Fisheries), a responsible fisheries management standard used to evaluate fishing in the Gulf of Mexico. It is controlled by the Audubon Nature institute.
Advocate for marine preserves. Demanding the establishment (and enforcement!!!) of no-catch marine reserves will help fish stocks rebound and simultaneously enhance nearby fishing areas.
Watch Seaspiracy on Netflix. This documentary exposes the environmental and humanitarian infractions that result from the international commercial fishing industry.
