Whole Story

Thanks. Your efforts are very admirable. But may we look at the other side? What about contaminated fish - all kinds, those with nuclear residue, those containing mercury & the numerous other threats to human health? As a group in the forefront of a number of issues, can you provide us with information about what Whole Foods is doing to limit our exposure to fish with toxic ingredients. Thank you.

Good job! Glad you will not sell fish that are not sustainable and whose catch harms the ocean! It is not worth it to eat that kind of food. There are plenty of other choices. Nice work!

I just purchased (today) chilean sea bass from my local WF. I looked on the Monteray Bay watch list, and this fish comes up on the red avoid list. Also, it say UK on it, which I read it is illegal to call it that under Fish Labeling regulations.

You Whole food shoppers have already been paying extremely high prices for fish,and this move will make the price exponentialy higher,with the regulations that Wholefoods has placed on fisherman.All this so can make it look like that they really care,when it will in fact increase their bottom line,while possibly costing jobs in the seafood industry.

@Sam We have already developed industry-leading standards for aquaculture (fish farming) with strict requirements for each farm (including farms raising Atlantic salmon) that supplies Whole Foods Market. MBA has evaluated general practices in fish farming, but does not evaluate individual farms and thus cannot fulfill our unique needs for ranking farmed seafood. If a species in our stores has been farm-raised, that means it meets our very strict farmed seafood standards and carries the “Responsibly Farmed” logo to show that the product has been third-party verified to ensure that the standards are being met. Whole Foods Market’s Quality Standards for farmed seafood are extensive. For example, we require traceability from farm to market and prohibit the use of antibiotics, added growth hormones, added preservatives like sulfites, and land animal by-products in feed. Our complete standards for farmed seafood can be viewed online at www.wholefoodsmarket.com/values/seafood.php.

Will buy my fish elsewhere. I support the fishermen and fisherwomen and their families

Some of the fish listed are, indeed, over-fished and for that I commend you. But several species are not stressed and, as long as there are people willing to pay the price, should not be banned; American Red Snapper, Vermillion Snapper for example. As for the mere fact that you EVER sold marlin, or any billfish of any kind, just boggles the mind! Do you realize the value of a sport caught marlin versus commercially caught?!? The thousands of dollars generated by the sport fishing industry per fish, not to mention the thousands of jobs to support the sport. Here are some of those that benefit directly and indirectly; the travel industry, hospitality, the marina, boat owner/captain/crew, taxidermists, tackle manufacturers, bait shops

So, No more endangered fish. How about all tose poor Cows, pigs, sheep, buffalo, gonna keep serving up their meat? What a bunch of hypocrites.

Half the selection at twice the price!

@Allan Our partnering organizations, Blue Ocean Institute and Monterey Bay Aquarium do the research and the rankings that you find in our stores. Therefore, our information comes directly from those organizations. The reason we have implemented this program is because we are a values-driven company and it is part of our core values to take care of our environment. We are no longer sourcing from red-rated fisheries, but have found fisheries that are green or yellow-rated to replace the ones that we no longer source from. So, we are still selling fish. We believe that can be good business to both sell fish and take care of our oceans.

The fish at your store is way too expensive anyway. So now when I want healthier lobster, I can't get it there?! So off to the cheap markets we'll go. Also, will you be taking Kashi cereal off your shelves? They have been using GMO soy and such in their products! ICK!

To me, "sustainable" means something that everyone could do for an indefinite period of time without causing a collapse of one kind or another. Since "everyone" means 7 billion people, eating fish at all is not sustainable. If we each take just one fish, there went 7 billion fish. NOT sustainable, period. Ocean fish stocks are in total collapse from overfishing and a lack of international protective treaties. Fish farms are even worse - destroying the wild habitat, consuming massive amounts of feed and producing massive amounts of pollution. Fish are intelligent wild animals who feel pain, can suffer, and belong to social groups. Fish are also a critical part of the ecosystem's balance with millions of years of marine evolution balancing them between their predators and their food sources. When you take a fish from the ocean, you take it from another species who depends on it. Choose compassion, choose sustainability - don't eat wild fish or farmed fish. If you feel you must have fish, grow your own in an aquaculture and recycle the waste water (in symbiosis with your garden). DHA/Omega-3 amino acids are often used as an excuse to kill fish; however these nutrients are available from algae sources (where the fish got them). One grocery chain sparing only a few of the most threatened species does nothing to help them recover. This just shifts the threat onto the next species of fish. This is just pure CYA brand management. Whole Foods doesn't care about fish - they just don't want to be "on the hook" when these fish are declared commercially extinct (in like 2015). I do respect that Whole Foods is stopping the very worst of its profiteering from the killing of endangered species - but in order to truly own up to the damage you've done - you need to get out there and restore fish stocks! Not just stop killing ;)