More ‘sustainable’ fish recipes available for Iftar

Advocates of environmental conservation in the UAE have urged residents to ‘go for green’ at their family Iftar gatherings by choosing wisely from sustainable fish species.The Emirates Wildlife Society (EWS-WWF) has recommended ‘sustainable’ fish choices, noting, “small changes to our eating habits can make a difference and help all of us take positive steps to ensure future generations will benefit from a healthy ecosystem.”Just in time for the holy month, three additional species of fish have been added by the EWS-WWF to its recently unveiled ‘Choose Wisely’ fish consumer guide. The first-of-its-kind sustainable fish cookbook featured 20 sustainable fish recipes from the UAE.Darren Hiltz, conservation officer at the EWS-WWF, said the newly-added fish species included Shaam (yellow fin sea-bream), Hilali (black-spotted rubber-lip) and Beyah Arabi (blue spot mullet).“The Hilali fish with its neon yellow fins and small leopard spots is a colourful addition to the sustainable list, albeit it’s not common in kitchens. The Shaam also has accents of yellow and is great used in sweet and sour recipes combining chilly and sweet fruits. Both fish make great alternative choices for home cooked meals,” he elaborated.Hiltz added these two species are in plentiful supply in the UAE waters and will not be endangered by over-fishing. “This brings the total species of sustainable fish options to nine, giving cooks at home a huge range of tasty options to treat loved ones to this Ramadan.”According to him, 60 per cent of the total catch in the UAE is made up of species that are fished beyond sustainable levels.“By choosing sustainable options and reducing the demand on overfished species, we can alleviate some of the pressure on these species and contribute towards the conservation of our marine environment,” noted Hiltz.Using a traffic light symbol, the green category fishes are recommended for consumption as they are not overfished. The orange category includes fish types that are considered good choices, but there are more sustainable options in the green category. The species listed under the red category, including eight popular fish such as Hamour, Kingfish and Shaari, are being overexploited and have seen a sharp decline in their populations. The ‘Choose Wisely’ fish consumer guide in the Middle East is available to download at www.ewswwf.ae. This easy-to-use consumer guide includes the most popular local species found in fish markets, supermarkets and restaurants across the Emirates and divides them into three categories based on stock assessment.This resource can help the UAE residents become part of the solution to this problem that affects both the local and global marine environment.“We hope to continue introducing more sustainable options to UAE residents. We also hope that UAE residents will continue to explore the culinary tastes of sustainable fish and help expand our recipe database on www.choosewisely.ae, by submitting their recipes during Ramadan,” Hiltz added. From / Gulf today