Words by Hannah Stein
Photos courtesy of Fish Klub
After hearing about it from seemingly everyone I knew, I was finally convinced into watching Seaspiracy, Nexflix’s latest controversial documentary which seeks to expose the dark underbelly of our world’s industrial fishing industry. As I’d been warned, the film’s depictions of this disturbingly violent industry and its catastrophic impact on the environment had me asking myself, would I ever eat fish again?
Indeed, there is an alternative to “cancelling” fish altogether, which is to stop buying industrial seafood and to support local, sustainable and non-industrial sources instead. It’s not a quick-fix solution, but for those who are curious and willing to do the work of conscientious consumption, look no further than Fish Klub to find the ultimate guide and source for sustainable seafood.
Since 2017, Fish Klub has established themselves in Berlin, Germany, as specialists of sustainably fished seafood. They have cultivated personal relationships by working directly with producers who are based on the French coast (Atlantic Sea) and who fish on small day boats of maximum 12-18 meters of length.
They use sustainable techniques such as single line fishing, small nets, hand fishing and spend no longer than a day at sea. Fish Klub positions themselves clearly in the context of the food industry in their statement, “We are not activists, but well doing entrepreneurs taking an active and sincere place within a well-intended supply chain of sustainable industries”.
Margaux Friocourt, founder of Fish Klub elaborates, “You can’t blame people for eating badly, because sometimes it’s a lack of knowledge. We offer sustainable and good fish, and support our fishermen and producers by showcasing who they are, where they come from and what they do, while selling their product. Our work is really to be messengers, to communicate this knowledge to people, and to build a business around this. We don’t claim to be activists, but what we do in itself is making a statement”.
In a relatively short amount of time, Fish Klub has already seen a tangible shift in consumer conscientiousness. “Seaspiracy brought lot’s of questions from our local customers, which has made us even more communicative and transparent,” Margaux explains. She thinks that perhaps the pace of the pandemic lifestyle during Covid has actually helped people to get back in touch with their own cooking and become more open to experimenting and trying new things.
“Ask questions, get to know your producers, try to eat seasonally, be careful about what you buy, who you buy from, and what you’re actually buying”. That is Margaux’s advice to anyone who wants to support the sustainable future of our oceans, which also means to care about the lives and communities wholly dependent on the lasting prosperity of our world’s precious water resource. Which, in other words, includes all of us.
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