FISH FRIENDLY

LYNNE MILLER

Seafood has traditionally been sold on its strengths -- it's healthy, easy to prepare and affordable. But highly publicized stories about the detrimental effects of salmon farms, the danger of depleted fish stocks and potentially damaging levels of methylmercury in some species have made consumers skeptical and the art of the retail sale more difficult.

Much to their credit, retailers are taking the challenge seriously. One approach combines procurement with consumer education in a groundbreaking partnership between Ahold USA and the New England Aquarium.

Ahold officials wanted to balance the negative tide of publicity by improving the company's seafood-buying practices. They looked at other sustainable fishing education programs, such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium's "Seafood Watch," which advises consumers on ecologically safe seafood choices; as well as the Marine Stewardship Council, an initiative of the World Wildlife Fund and Unilever, a major buyer of frozen fish, that certifies sustainable fisheries and grants use of a special eco-label to approved operations.

While these programs were admirable, Ahold officials realized they needed a customized program to meet the company's needs.

"We looked at all the programs out there," said Craig Appleyard, an aquatic biologist who was hired by Ahold to manage the project. "We looked at everything but we didn't use any model out there. We decided to partner with an environmental group that was neutral and thought about the problems the same way as us."

Ahold teamed up with the Boston-based New England Aquarium, and together they launched the EcoSound Project, which is just starting to get attention from the general public. For the retailer, the partnership provides research and buying recommendations to the Ahold procurement team in Braintree, Mass.

Farmed fish, which make up 70% of Ahold's seafood volume, has been the main focus so far. Officials wanted to separate the facts from misinformation regarding the controversial practice. Glenn Hovermale, who manages the EcoSound Project for the aquarium, made surprise visits to various fish farms to monitor conditions, management and habitat impacts of farming individual species. Suppliers were also audited. The findings shed light on fish that are in trouble, as well as unsound farming practices, and that led the retailer to make some changes in purchasing.

"We haven't dropped [vendors] but we've excluded some based on their environmental practices," Appleyard said. "We're trying to take out the guesswork so our procurement department can make decisions based on facts. We're developing farmed standards and we're progressing on that front. The final goal is to have a standard we can audit."

The changes are not visible to consumers, or for that matter widely understood by associates at Ahold's American stores. That's beginning to change. Hovermale recently started training seafood department managers so they can respond to shoppers who want to know why the stores aren't carrying certain varieties of fish or answer any other questions regarding the project.

"We've been very quiet about this," Appleyard said. "We've just started talking about it to our associates."

Hovermale trained several hundred managers from Ahold's two Giant store divisions -- Giant Food, Landover, Md., and Giant Food Stores, Carlisle, Pa. -- and plans to complete training the rest of the managers from the other members of the Ahold family: Stop & Shop, Quincy, Mass.; Bi-Lo, Greenville, S.C.; Tops Friendly Markets, Williamsville, N.Y.; and Bruno's Supermarkets, Birmingham, Ala.

"Ninety-five percent of the presentations, I put people to sleep in 10 minutes," Hovermale said with a laugh. "I give them an introduction to the project. We try to give them insight on how it comes from the ocean and ends up in their stores. We give them background on how it's done, a presentation on aquaculture. I get probably 10% to 20% [of the managers] excited and interested. Some are really focused on price, not on how it gets from boat to plate."

There's nothing simple about responsible seafood procurement, especially when buyers have to stock 1,600 stores with products. Appleyard and his associates have taken a deliberate approach, choosing not to set unrealistic deadlines for having a 100% sustainable seafood case. Rather, the goal is to create and administer a program that works with reasonable goals.

For example, one of the biggest challenges to date involved Chilean sea bass, a premium, mild-flavored fish that became a popular restaurant menu item in the 1990s. Chilean sea bass, known as the lowly Patagonian toothfish prior to its starring role on pricey menus, has been overfished, and illegally fished; some experts believe the species will be extinct in five years. Hovermale's recommendation to Ahold: Stop selling it. For all practical purposes, the retailer has done just that. The stores don't promote or stock the species, and seafood managers have been instructed to explain the environmental problems to consumers. Anyone who really wants the fish can place a special order for it.

"That decision is a year old, and there has not been a single instance of having to order it," said Hovermale, who considers the Chilean sea bass decision to be the project's biggest success story to date.

SN's telephone check of seven Giant stores in Maryland and Pennsylvania confirmed they're not selling the fish. However, when asked why they don't carry it, most seafood department associates said the species was expensive, and there was little demand for it, with no mention of the environmental rationale. Only one associate at a suburban Washington store said, "It's an endangered species."

Interestingly, two store associates suggested orange roughy as a substitute for Chilean sea bass. However, that species has also been under the retailer's scrutiny. From an audit, Hovermale found New Zealand, unlike Australia and Namibia, protected the sea mounts -- areas where orange roughy like to aggregate.

Ahold's vendor has been directed to buy orange roughy only from New Zealand stocks, based on Hovermale's recommendation, Appleyard said.

"We have not audited him," he said, referring to the vendor. "The next phase will be keeping everyone accountable."

Ahold USA is working with the retailer's European divisions to establish a standard for farmed salmon, a product that's generated great controversy with environmental groups. Farmed salmon is one of Ahold's top-selling seafood products.

"There are people out there who believe farmed salmon should be stopped," Appleyard said. "You can't take the approach all farmed salmon is bad. We're trying to finalize our salmon standard. It's a top priority for us."

Consumers are starting to find out about the EcoSound Project. Visitors to the New England Aquarium pick up brochures describing the program and offering basic definitions of sustainable seafood, aquaculture and commercial fishing. "By making sure that the seafood at your grocery store is caught in an ocean-friendly manner, the only decision you have to make is what's for dinner," the brochure explains. A brochure can also be found on Giant Food's Web site.

Environmental groups argue sustainable seafood is not just good for the environment, but good for business. Indeed, from a business standpoint, it doesn't make much sense to invest money and time promoting fish that may not be around much longer, Appleyard noted. He views the EcoSound Project as an ongoing "work in progress" that will pay off in the long term.

"You're trying to improve not just Ahold but the industry in general," Appleyard said. "You're trying to make sure your seafood is healthy and coming from good sources. You're trying to build the business, and [consumer] confidence. Hopefully by doing that, you'll become a destination point."

The Dish on Fish

Environmental Defense's list of endangered fish and shellfish species highlights the impact of current production and suggests substitutions.

SPECIES

PRODUCTION METHODS / ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS / SUBSTITUTES

Most Atlantic sole/flounder

Trawl net / Many stocks overfished; habitual damage from trawling; high bycatch / Pacific stocks of English Dover, Petrale, Sand sole

Bluefin Tuna

Longline, handline / Overfished; high longline bycatch / Albacore or yellowfin tuna; mahi mahi

Chilean Sea Bass

Longline, some trawl / Overfished; illegal fishing; high longline bycatch of birds and marine life / Black cod (sablefish); striped bass

Orange Roughy

Deepwater trawl / Overfished; habitat damage fromtrawling / Pollock; mahi mahi; rainbow trout

Red Snapper

Handline / Overfished; other species in trouble sold as red snapper; fishing can damage coral reefs / Tilapia; catfish; Alaskan pollock; mahi mahi; striped bass

Shark

Longline, gillnet, driftnet / Overfished; shark finning; high longline bycatch / Swordfish; tuna

Farmed salmon

Ocean net pens / Water pollution; damage to coastal habitats; threats to wild salmon stocks; chemical use; toxics in farmed fish / Arctic char; rainbow trout

Spiny lobster (Caribbean)

Trapped/Diver / Many stocks overfished / Americal lobsters; Australian rock lobster

Most imported farmed shrimp

Pond raised / Damage to mangroves and other coastal habitats; water pollution; chemical use; use of wild caught fish in feed; use of wild caughtshrimp to stock ponds / Most U.S. farmed shrimp; crabs; scallops

Most imported wild-caught shrimp

Trawl net / High bycatch, including endangered sea turtles / Most U.S. farmed shrimp