By FRANK CARINI/ecoRI News staff
The Eat Like a Fish citizen science project studied wildlife in a
human habitat: the markets, kitchens, and tables that form the final links of
the supply chains that connect ocean to plate. (Eating with the Ecosystem)
Dogfish
doesn’t have an appetizing ring to it. The name for this member of the shark
family has kept it off dinner plates, at least in the United States. In
Britain, dogfish is often the key ingredient in fish and chips.
A
few years ago, in an attempt to make the fish sound more appealing, the Cape
Cod Commercial Fishermen’s Alliance, New England fishermen, and
conservationists tried to rebrand it as “Cape shark.”
The effort to create
local demand for this plentiful regional species, which grew in number with the
collapse of the cod fishery, hasn’t yet taken hold.
With
its mild white boneless flesh, Kate Masury, program director forEating with the
Ecosystem, said dogfish is less flaky than cod but just as delicious.
Eating with the Ecosystem, a Rhode
Island-based nonprofit that promotes a place-based approach to sustaining New
England’s wild seafood, is working with consumers, chefs, suppliers,
processors, and fishermen to build a market for dogfish and the many other
lower-valued species swimming off New England’s coast.
“It’s about increasing consumer awareness about what is out there and creating a demand,” Masury said.
More
than 100 edible wild seafood species thrive in the region’s salty waters. But
finding most of them, such as dogfish, ocean perch, scup, periwinkles, sea
robin, or sea urchin, at a local market or on a restaurant menu is a challenge.
A
new Eating with the Ecosystem study that used citizen scientists to track
the availability of these underappreciated species documented some interesting
observations about local fish and shellfish in the New England marketplace.
Unsurprisingly,
the region’s seafood counters are heavily dominated by five classic New England
species: lobster, sea scallops, soft-shell clams, cod, and haddock.
At
the other end of the market spectrum, however, half of the 52 local species
included in the recent study were found less than 10 percent of the time.
Many
of these species, including dogfish, whiting, skate, and Atlantic butterfish,
which is often caught as bycatch in the squid fishery and shouldn’t be confused
with its West Coast version, are among the most abundant species in the ocean
ecosystem off the New England coast.
But
despite their prevalence in local waters, these four species were found even
less often, only 3 percent of the time. Dogfish was only found twice out of 198
searches, and skate 14 times (252). Both butterfish (268) and whiting (198)
were found eight times.
The
report’s findings are based on a research effort called the Eat Like a Fish
citizen science project. The project’s 86 participants hailed from all walks of
life and resided in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Maine, and New
Hampshire.
For
26 weeks, from May to October of last year, the 86 volunteers, including 19
from Rhode Island, visited seafood markets, grocery stores, farmers markets,
and seaside fishing piers in search of the 52 New England seafood species.
Each
participant received a weekly list of four randomly chosen local species and
searched for them in up to three local markets. Upon encountering one of their
species, they took it home and made a meal out of it.
“Citizen
scientists found a stark mismatch between what’s swimming in local waters and
what’s available on local seafood counters,” said Masury, who coordinated the
research project.
“This imbalance can strain the resilience of New England’s
underwater ecosystems and undermine the well-being of the people who depend on
them. Moving forward, we hope to see the New England marketplace do a better
job of reflecting the full diversity of what our waters have to offer.”
The
study’s goals were to understand how well New England’s retail marketplace
reflects the diversity of local seafood and to draw on the volunteers’ lived
experiences to help explain why these mismatches exist and what can be done to
correct them.
As
ecosystems change more rapidly because of climate change, Masury said diversity
must become a cornerstone of the way we eat and market seafood.
She also noted
that understanding the assimilation of local species by the regional seafood
supply chains is an important first step in achieving greater symmetry between
ecosystems and markets, reducing impacts on ocean food webs, and positioning
local fishing economies to be resilient in the face of change.
Citizen
scientists who took part in the project say it was informative, challenging,
and frustrating.
“At the inception of the project, I had no doubt that I would find, prepare, and marvel at my brilliance with new, exotic, local species of seafood each week,” said Sherri Darocha, a participating citizen scientist from Rhode Island.
“I
never dreamed that most weeks it would be so challenging to find even one fish
on my list. After twenty-six weeks, I have plenty of pent-up fish envy that
will only be soothed by finding species that have eluded me, like cunner and
red hake.”
To
assist consumers in finding these largely ignored species and help reduce the
strain on the region’s ocean ecosystem, Eating with the Ecosystem offers
several tips for consumers interested in expanding their local seafood options:
Seek
out local species you haven’t tried before. Many citizen scientists discovered
new favorite seafood species by going outside their comfort zone.
Don’t
shy away from whole fish. Using every part of the fish reduces waste. The more
mess you make in the kitchen, the more you will enjoy the meal that follows.
If
you don’t see a particular local species available at the seafood counter, ask
for it. Letting your fishmonger know you would like to buy it will help build
demand.
Many
fishmongers can locate hard-to-find local seafood species if you notify them in
advance. Special ordering these species helps show fishmongers that there is
interest in purchasing them, without requiring them to assume any risk.
When
experimenting with new species, make it a social event. Team up with friends
and family members who share your commitment. Citizen scientists relished the
long-distance camaraderie that developed through the Eat Like a Fish project.
To
help seafood lovers diversify their diets, Eating with the Ecosystem recently
produced a cookbook called Simmering the Sea: Diversifying Cookery to Sustain Our
Fisheries. Populated with whimsical ecological tales, imaginative
artwork, and simple yet elegant recipes, the 100-page book celebrates 40
underappreciated fish and shellfish that populate the Northwest Atlantic Ocean.