Status: 03/10/2022 1:48 p.m
The fish is running out – this year even earlier than 2021. Development organizations criticize this and thus also the high German fish consumption. A high demand stands in contrast to the declining catch quotas.
According to development organizations, as of tomorrow, March 11, Germany has already consumed as much fish and seafood as is caught or farmed under the German flag in a whole year.
According to calculations by the evangelical aid organization “Brot für die Welt”, the Bremen association “Fair Oceans” and the “Slow Food Germany” network, this is the “End of Fish Day”, i.e. the day when the fish is running out early as never before. Last year, this was the case on March 17, six days later.
Controversial issue of fishmeal production
The organizations point out that continued high demand is offset by declining catch quotas due to overfishing, water pollution and climate change.
The fishing expert from “Bread for the World”, Francisco Mari, explained that a current controversial issue is the production of fishmeal: Valuable shoal fish are processed in factories into animal feed. These fish have either been withdrawn from the marine food chain or lost to the fisheries of poor countries in the southern hemisphere. “So they are missing precisely where coastal communities are most dependent on intact marine ecosystems and fish stocks.”
“Remove salmon from the menu”
Manfred Kriener, who researches for the Fish Commission of “Slow Food Germany”, reported that salmon, as a product of industrial mass farming, also contributes to many animal welfare and environmental problems. The association is therefore promoting the elimination of salmon from the menu.