fish diet

Question
I love fish, and have eaten tuna and salmon for years. However, now there is news of mercury in such fish. Is there any safe fish you can recommend?

Answer
Dear FishPerson

The latest reports on the levels of toxicity in fish (specifically salmon and tuna) is indeed quite disconcerting. On top of that there are other issues which could make eating fish a troubling experience, such as aqua-farming or dolphin killing.
Our entire economically viable world is somewhat too polluted to be able to guarantee us absolutely "safe" food, by now. All we can hope to do is find suppliers which provide us with fish that has been caught with expertise and respect. You might like to try looking for "organic" fish, which is farmed in an environmentally and fish-friendly manner or caught in the less contaminated lakes and rivers (especially tinned or smoked there are several alternatives available here in Europe at least).
There is something about being able to look a fish in the eye which may be able to help you choose your meal once you have developed a certain (culinary) sensitivity; so I find shopping at a fish market or reputable fishmongers helps me find the right fish to eat - whereas pre-packed supermarket products often alientate me too much from my judgement.
It depends a bit on where you are writing from for me to be able to make any suggestions as to what fish to look out for. In general, the deep sea types, further out to sea are less affected by our toxic waste dumping along the coast. On a more metaphysical note, I even suspect, maybe, also the ones which have been less over-fished are less susceptible to the levels of pollution, since they are put under less stress.  On the down side, though, these also tend to be the more expensive ones! (Tarbot, Halibut, Swordfish). It could also be a little season dependent (you might want to keep your eye on the influence of tides, tradewinds and gulfstreams). Without becoming too Bio-Dynamic on you, the planets may even be able to tell you when what fish is best consumed. But this could get a little too complex for the lay person who just wants to have a good piece of fish to go with his chips (or I'd recommend sauteed potatoes or try basmati rice for a change).  At present, I also enjoy Red Mullet and Plaice.
Wishing you happy fishing and don't worry too much about mercury: it has it's ups and its downs like most things....
Many blubs from
Evelyn

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