Singapore and the Seafood Guide

If you like to eat seafood but are concerned about the impact this may have on fish stocks, marine wildlife and habitats, then the Singapore Seafood Guide will help you choose fish which come from healthy stocks, are sustainably managed, and caught using methods that minimise damage to the marine wildlife and environment.

To help consumers make the right choice when shopping or at a restaurant, the WWF Singapore Seafood Guide will fit neatly into your pocket or wallet. The seafood guide will list the recommended fish to eat, fish to think twice about, and fish to avoid, based on WWF assessment ratings relating to stock status, fisheries management, and impacts of fishing methods.

If we want to maintain the many choices of seafood that we love, keep the oceans healthy, and sustain the livelihoods that depend on this, we need to make smarter seafood choices right now.

There are various ways to achieve and maintain sustainable fisheries and help fish stocks recover. Singapore sits on the edge of the Coral Triangle. As a major sefood consumption destination in the Asia-Pacific region, and as a major trade hub for export of fish and seafood from the Coral Triangle to other countries, Singapore has a consumption footprint that extends across the breadth of the Coral Triangle region. In support of conserving the Coral Triangle region, seafood consumers in Singapore have an important role to play.

In support of the Coral Triangle Programme, WWF Singapore is developing a sustainable seafood programme that will aim to:

• Provide information and increase awareness of consumers and corporations in order for them to make an informed choice when purchasing seafood.
• Increase the demand for fish from sustainable, well-managed stocks, caught using methods that minimise impacts on the marine environment and other species.

Do you know where the seafood you ate last night came from? How was it harvested? Or what sorts of environmental impacts are associated with its production? No? Well, you are certainly not alone.

WWF Singapore is in the process of developing a seafood guide to promote sustainable seafood, and help consumers and corporations in Singapore to sustain fish populations for the future.

Increasingly, consumers want to feel safe in the knowledge that the seafood they’re purchasing is procured in a way that doesn’t cause harm to the ocean environment. Most consumers however, do not have access to the information they need to make these informed and more responsible consumption choices. Seafood guides are a way of providing this information in a readable, easy to use and compact format.

How will it work?
The pocket sized seafood guide will list some of the most commonly consumed seafood in Singapore, classified under three lists: “recommended fish to eat”, “fish to think twice about”, and “fish to avoid”. In order to determine which species come under each category they will be assessed against criteria for both wild-caught and farmed species. For wild-caught species the criteria will include: impact of fishing practices used, health or status of the population, and fisheries management in place. For farmed species, criteria will include: whether fry/fingerlings for culture are sustainably sourced, whether fish feed is sustainably sourced, and the impact of farming activities on the surrounding environment.

Seafood guides are widely used throughout the world to assist consumers in making responsible choices about the seafood they eat.

Species in a seafood guide are usually classified into one of three categories, with these categories signified through the use of colour coding. Categories most often used are:

Green: Recommended
Consumers are encouraged or “recommended” to purchase species listed in green categories as assessments show these species are being sustainably fished and there is good management in place.

Yellow: Think Twice
Consumers are asked to “think twice” before purchasing species listed in yellow categories as the fishery could be better managed and there is still circumspection as to capture or farming method. Also increased demand for these species could affect sustainability.

Red: Avoid
Consumers are asked to avoid purchasing species listed in red categories as assessments show these species are being unsustainably fished and there is poor management in place.

When will the Singapore Sea Food Guide be available?
We are in the process of identifying key species for inclusion in the guide and of undertaking new or updating previous assessments to determine the sustainability of the most commonly consumed seafood in Singapore. Once completed, the full seafood guide will be available on the WWF Singapore website and in pocket size hand-out format.