WHOLE FOODS PROGRAM HELPS SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD CAMPAIGN

COELI CARR

AUSTIN, Texas -- Whole Foods Markets celebrated June 30 as "Fish for Our Future" day to highlight its month-long, storewide promotion of sustainable, renewable seafood resources.

The day's events, held throughout the chain's 125 retail operations, included in-store appearances by celebrity and local chefs who demonstrated cooking with wild Alaska salmon, followed by tasting opportunities. Several stores used June "menu of the month" recipes, posted on Whole Foods' Web site and created exclusively for the company by award-winning chef Rick Bayless of Frontera Grill and Topolobampo, Chicago.

"Whole Foods Market actively supports initiatives that allow marine life to rebuild and thrive, as we constantly look to provide our customers with seafood from well-managed sources," said Steve Parkes, the chain's national seafood director.

The chain's awareness campaign, which runs through mid-July -- the height of wild Alaska salmon season -- provides Whole Foods customers with educational materials about the importance of sustainable seafood practices and publicizes the work of the London-based Marine Stewardship Council, a non-profit organization that has developed standards for sustainable fisheries throughout the world and awards those that meet its criteria.

Last year, the Alaska Salmon Fishery became the first U.S. fishery certified under MSC's sustainability eco-label standard. Western Australia rock lobster, Thames herring, Burry Inlet cockle and New Zealand hoki have also been certified, and more than two dozen fisheries are currently applying for certification.

During the promotion, Whole Foods will donate partial proceeds from the sale of several of its branded products to MSC.