« June 2008 Table of Contents 
Editor's Note: Redefining sustainability
By Fiona Robinson, Editor in Chief
June 01, 2008
I didn't realize until I attended last month's Cooking for
Solutions seminar at the Monterey Bay Aquarium in Monterey,
Calif., that I had a pretty narrow definition of
sustainability. Up until now my take on it has been if you take
too much fish from the sea, that's unsustainable. But after
listening to several seminars at the aquarium, I discovered how
unrealistic that definition is.
Gene Kahn's keynote, In Search of Sustainability, put
several things into perspective. Kahn, global sustainability
officer at General Mills, said sustainability is not a specific
goal, but a work in progress. Kahn doesn't deem any product
sustainable - he sees everything as "more sustainable," or less
so.
This certainly rings true for seafood companies, where
sustainability is not black or white, but a shade of gray. For
example, farmed salmon, or any other carnivorous farmed species
relying on fishmeal, may never be deemed sustainable by
environmentalists or receive an eco-label. But buyers do have
the option of changing how farmed salmon is shipped to them, or
whether or not it's stored in a recyclable box. As Kahn
mentioned, there's no cookie-cutter method for developing
sustainability programs.
I used to be wary of sustainability claims that weren't
supported by a certification program, but Kahn changed my view
of this somewhat. Companies shouldn't be overlooked for not
having an eco-label: Starting the path to accountability should
be rewarded, not chastised. You don't need certification from
an agency to tell your customers the sustainability story.
But as a buyer, you need to beware of greenwashing, a topic
Kahn also addressed. Greenwashing is misleading the public with
propaganda designed to present an image of environmental
responsibility.
"It's misleading to lead consumers to believe a product is
carbon-neutral or to purchase carbon offsets. Sustainability
has to be a systemwide approach," said Kahn. That system is not
just the way a fish is harvested, but the way a company
produces seafood or any other product. "You need to own what
you own and take accountability for your impacts - develop
appropriate goals and metrics," he added.
Sustainable seafood really comes down to trusting not just a
product, but the company behind it. It feels contradictory to
use "trust" and "seafood" in the same sentence. But if the
industry is going to move forward on the sustainable seafood
front, trust is exactly what is needed.