Best Fish Picks

Seafood shopping becomes tricky when personal health and environmental concerns are factored in. Many wild species are declining due to the effects of overfishing and pollution, while other species are harvested with lines or nets that kill "bycatch" such as sea turtles. And several seafoods are so high in brain-damaging mercury that children and women who are pregnant, nursing or of childbearing age should avoid them altogether or eat no more than a six-ounce serving once per month.

Some freshwater fish are also contaminated with mercury and other pollutants, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), that can lower children's I.Q. Before eating local fish, check the EPA's regional fish advisories. (See www.epa.gov/ost/fish.)

So, which fish to eat? See our table below. Ask your fish seller or restaurateur where a fish comes from, and try to choose from healthier populations, such as wild Alaskan salmon certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (for more info on the Marine Stewardship Council, see Evolving Sustainable Labels, this issue).

"Yes" Fish
Abalone (farmed)
Anchovies
Catfish (farmed)
Caviar (farmed)
Clams (farmed)
Crab
Crawfish
Herring
Hoki
Rainbow trout (farmed)
Salmon (wild Alaskan)
Sand dabs
Sardines
Squid (Pacific)
Striped bass (farmed)
Sturgeon (farmed)
Tilapia (farmed)
Trout (farmed)
"Maybe" Fish
Blue crab (Gulf Coast)
Blue mussel
Cod (Pacific)
Flounder (Pacific)
Eastern oyster
Mahimahi
Mussels (farmed)
Oysters (farmed)
Pollock
Salmon (Pacific)
Sole (Pacific)
Striped bass
"No" Fish
Caviar
Chilean sea bass (toothfish)
Cod (Atlantic)
Flounder (Atlantic)
Great Lakes salmon
Grouper
Haddock
Halibut (Atlantic)
King mackerel
Marlin
Monkfish
Orange roughy
Oysters (Gulf Coast)
Pike
Salmon (farmed Atlantic)
Scallops
Sea bass
Sharks
Shrimp*
Snapper
Sole (Atlantic)
Swordfish
Tilefish
Tuna
Bluefin Tuna

Note:
*For every pound harvested, 4 to 10 pounds of unwanted marine life are tossed!
Explanation of symbols in mercury column:

Key:
: highest in mercury; children and women who are pregnant, nursing or of childbearing age should avoid.
: moderate mercury; sensitive populations should limit to once per month.