Canada's Seafood Guide

For more information or to download wallet-sized copies of Canada's Seafood Guide, see seachoice.org.

Health Advisory

• Ø = mercury
• § = PCBs, dioxins, or pesticides

Best Choice

This species is currently fished or harvested sustainably.

• catfish (US) farmed
• caviar or sturgeon farmed
• clams farmed
• cod: Pacific (US) bottom longline, jig, pot
• crab: Dungeness §
• fish sticks: pollock (AK)
• haddock (Canada) bottom longline
• hake: Pacific (Canada)
• herring: Atlantic (US), Pacific (Canada)
• imitation crab: pollock (AK)
• lobster: American (Atl. Canada)
• lobster: rock, spiny (Aus., US, Western Baja)
• mussels farmed
• oysters farmed Ø
• pollock (AK)
• sablefish (AK, BC)
• sardine: brisling, sprat (US)
• shrimp or prawn: sidestripe, spot (BC) trap-caught
• swordfish (Atl. Canada) harpoon §
• tilapia (US) farmed
• trout: rainbow land-based farmed
• *tuna trawl-caught §

Some Concerns

Seafood that should be consumed infrequently or when a green choice is not available.

• catfish, tra or basa (Int'l) farmed
• clams: Atlantic soft shell (Atl.), geoduck (US Pac.) wild
• cod: Pacific (Canada, US) trawl
• crab: king, snow (Canada, US)
• haddock (US) bottom longline
• halibut: Atlantic, Pacific (Canada) bottom longline §
• lingcod §
• lobster: American (US Atl.) §
• mahi-mahi, dolphinfish, or dorado §
• mussels wild
• octopus (US)
• oysters wild Ø
• sablefish (CA, OR, WA)
• **salmon: Pacific wild
• scallops: Sea (NE Atl. US)
• shark (US Pac.) §
• shrimp (Atl., Gulf of Mexico) trawled
• sole (Pac.) §
• squid: jumbo, Humboldt, shortfin, summer (Int'l)
• swordfish (US Atl.) longline §
• *tuna (US) longline §

Avoid

Do not purchase these fish for now.

• caviar or sturgeon (Int'l) wild Ø §
• Chilean sea bass or Patagonian toothfish §
• clams (Atl.) dredged
• cod: Atlantic
• crab: king (Russia)
• flounder or sole: (US Atl.), arrowtooth (Canada) Ø
• grenadier
• haddock trawl
• halibut: Atlantic (US) trawl §
• lobster: spiny (Int'l except Aus. and US)
• monkfish §
• orange roughy §
• rockfish or snapper trawl §
• salmon: Atlantic, chinook farmed Ø
• scallops: sea (Canada, Mid-Atl. US)
• shark (Atl., Int'l) §
• shrimp or prawn, tiger, white (Int'l)
• swordfish (Canada, Med., SE Atl.) longline §
• tilapia (China, Taiwan) farmed
• *tuna (Pac. Int'l) longline
• tuna: bluefin §

*The category "tuna" includes albacore, bigeye (ahi), skipjack, and yellowfin but not bluefin.
** Check seasonal recommendations at seachoice.org.

Abbreviations

• AK=Alaska
• Atl.=Atlantic
• Aus.= Australia
• BC=British Columbia
• CA=California
• Int'l=International
• NE=Northeast
• Med.=Mediterranean
• OR=Oregon
• Pac.=Pacific
• SE=Southeast
• US=United States
• WA=Washington

Source: alive Web Exclusive, October 2007