Page 130 - How to Be a Conscious Eater - Making Food Choices That Are Good for You

caught my attention in the months afterward, as did “Thai
seafood: Are the prawns on your plate still fished by slaves?”
years later. Well into 2018, journalists and NGOs continued
to unearth more disturbing details while keeping tabs on
the issue. Tragically, as The Guardian reported in 2018, despite
pledges from the Thai government to clamp down, many of
the problems have persisted—from migrant workers sold like
goods and subjected to unfathomable working conditions to
physical abuse and the injustice of not being paid at all.
In 2014, Barack Obama established the Presidential Task
Force on Combating IUU Fishing and Seafood Fraud. Visit
iuufishing.noaa.gov to see how the action plan is unfolding.

WHAT CAN YOU DO? ABOVE ALL, INSIST ON
TRACEABILITY.
There are several ways to make sure what you’re buying can
be traced to legitimate fisheries whose practices have been
verified.

The Marine Stewardship Council blue eco-label that applies
to sustainability standards also verifies the specific fish-
ery where fish and seafood are sourced, and therefore that
they’re worthy of certification. But remember, this is for
wild-caught fish and seafood only.
For farmed products, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council’s
label is a good way to verify strict standards for not only
sustainability but also social responsibility and traceability.
With Seafood Watch already having established itself as
the go-to guide for sustainable seafood, used by millions
of people each year, it was fitting—and much needed—
that the Monterey Bay Aquarium helped launch a database
called the Seafood Slavery Risk Tool. (You can find it at
seafoodslaveryrisk.org.) Although this feature is primarily

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