Sustainable Seafood

Greenpeace has done it again. They have created a website to expose the absence of a sustainable seafood policy in Trader Joe's 300+ stores nationwide. Trader Joe's is popular for their low prices and use of natural and organic ingredients in their products, however they have done almost nothing to curb the destruction of our oceans while still seeming like they care about the health of their customers and the environment. In fact, they sell 15 of the 22 red list fish species. Red list species are farmed or caught in ways that are very harmful to the environment or other marine life. You can look up more specific information about red list species on the Greenpeace website or download and print a regional pocket guide from Monterey Bay Aquarium to help you make sustainable seafood choices when you are at a supermarket or restuarant. There is even a sushi guide available!

In the past, Greenpeace has done similar things to get other companies aware that consumers will not be complacent with environmentally destructive practices. They launched a campaign to get Apple to use less toxic materials in their computers and now Apple is the number one most environmentally friendly computer electronics brand. They do not do this simply to "make companies look bad", they are doing it to get them to make the right choices and to let them know that this is what consumers want. When they have done the right thing for the environment, Greenpeace makes the effort to celebrate their changes and make it known to the public that they are a leader in their field for environmental sustainability.

Trader Joe's Senior Vice President of Marketing, Jon Basolone said, "We simply listen to our customers". Greenpeace is now offering an way for us to speak out. If what Basolone says is true, then we have the ability to change their response to a rapidly depleted ocean, to a positive one for the environment.
 
Watch this spoof of Trader Joe's and take action.