Taking too many fish out of the sea has become such an important issue that First News talked to the Marine Stewardship Council about the problem…

Last week, Rupert Murray’s film, The End of the Line, was screened on TV. It’s a controversial film warning about the problems of over-fishing. Overfishing is a global problem affecting people all over the world. At the moment, a quarter of the world’s fish stocks are over-fished.

In those fisheries, humans are just taking too many fish out of the water. Around two billion people rely on fish for protein and the film warns of how we might run out of fish if we don’t change the way we catch it. What we need, is sustainable fishing.

Choosing fish

Making the best choice for the environment is tough when it comes to buying fish and seafood. There are a lot of questions you need answered: Where did this come from? Are there enough fish there to catch? What is the fishing doing to the environment? How are the fishermen managing the fishery? Can you prove this fish is the same fish that came out of the sea or is it from somewhere else?

There’s an easy way to find out

If you find the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) blue label in the supermarket or on your school menu, all of these questions have been answered. The MSC aims to make sure we’ve got fish for us and for future generations.

They do that by only putting their label on fish that has passed a tough, scientific examination of the fishery it comes from. It’s like having your own team of scientists there to check out the fish for you. By choosing fish with an MSC label, you’re making sure it comes from a well-managed, sustainable fishery. You will also be helping to solve the problem of overfishing.

Fishermen around the world are starting to change the way they fish to get the MSC label and it’s only because people in shops and restaurants are asking for it.

A fisherman’s view

Paul Joy is a fisherman in Hastings on the English south coast. His family have fished there for generations.

“It does show you that we’re a sustainable fishery… but that wasn’t enough. We can’t prove we’re a sustainable fishery. The only way we could prove we’re a sustainable fishery was to join MSC.”

Since the Hastings fishery got certified in 2005, they’ve started selling to chains of fishmongers. They’ve been paid more for their fish and journalists and film crews from around the world have come to Hastings to see how MSC can make a difference for the fishermen too.

Hastings Dover sole (a flat, brown fish) now appears on the menu at The Duke of Cambridge organic pub in London. It’s also on the menu at Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons owned by world-famous chef Raymond Blanc – accompanied by the blue MSC logo.