By: Sundial
Navigating the world of sustainable seafood is fraught with misinformation. Ocean catch is overfished and decreasing ocean diversity, while farmed fish live in horrible conditions and are kept alive through hormone supplements and vaccines to keep disease at bay. There are very few good choices when choosing seafood and unless you have a fish seller at your local farmers market, there are very few ways to know if a fish was sustainably caught. This book tells the story of a commercial fisherman who found himself looking for a sustainable way of growing food with the help of the ocean.
This book tells the story of a man who started his career working as a fisherman and later in commercial fishing. This created a great background for his marine knowledge, and knew the social background of the people who live and work in this field. This gives the author a very personal view of the social and economic issues that are tied to the environmental issues of sustainable fishing. He was able to find a solution to unsustainable fishing practices after trying fish farming. Finally, he found his passion in regenerative ocean farming: farming kelp and shellfish.
Throughout this book, I learned the most amazing things about kelp and shellfish. The amount of sea greens (plants and algae) in the ocean that we are not taking advantage of and farming to provide food for the world is crazy. There is an entire world of sea greens that we could be adding to our salads, soups, and snacks to help sustain a growing population. Additionally, shellfish feed naturally on the water and filter out nitrogen which is what has been rushing in from land farms around the world, creating dead spots where algal blooms come in and leach all the oxygen from the water. Both of these crops can be easy to grow and greatly support the ocean. Yet, many people have not heard of this!
The author goes into detail on how he is trying to change the stigma around sea greens to bring to the dinner plate instead of just as a snack people can eat. I was shocked to read that the West has a long history of using sea greens as food. The author dives into the history of the West using regenerative ocean farming and how this is not new but is a practice that has been lost and needs to come back. Through his company, he started to connect with chiefs, regular people, and companies that can help create kelp and other sea greens into fertilizers and food for other animals such as livestock who currently eat a large number of our crops. This is a new way of eating and regenerating the environment, which is exactly what we need to help heal this planet. For this to become a movement we must all try our hardest to spread the word about the positives that come from regenerative ocean farming.
I loved this book not only because of all the knowledge I learned on regenerative ocean farming and the ideas and hope it gave me for the future, but also the story it told. The author starts from the beginning with his upbringing and you get to know at least a little of what it is like to be a fisherman, what calls people to the sea, and to that profession. He details what is on the line for the professionals who catch our seafood. This needs to be seen and shown! While it is important to fight for the environment, social justice and economic justice are forever tied and must also be addressed. Local people who rely on these industries will only be forced into worse jobs if alternatives are not provided. This is what I truly liked about this book, how he presented this dilemma and still, was able to find a realistic and effective solution.
I would highly recommend reading this book to all people! You do not need a large knowledge of any scientific words or ocean lingua but instead an open mind and the willingness to try new things, even if it is a meal based around kelp.
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