Sustainability in the kitchen

by Irene Gozzellino

A concrete opportunity of environmental communication based on an immediately verifiable transfer of knowledge, on the fork precisely (verifiable by fork precisely), and set in a convivial atmosphere that increases the curiosity. That’s “ConsuMare Giusto – Salvare l’oceano sedendosi a tavola" (Save the ocean dinnering), a tasty “educational” dinner to understand what we are really eating whenever we have fish. This event will take place on 26 and 28 January 2011, at Bistronomie restaurant, in Piazza Statuto 2, in Turin. The Organization Diffusione Scientifica Creativa will offer a fish dinner, made of unusual and low environmental impact recipes. Every waiting between a course to another will be an occasion to increase our knowledge about fish and fishing: «In Mediterranean sea we have about 600 different eatable species of fish - explains DanieleTibi, speaking of the evening – we’ re used to eat only 20 of them, ‘because we know only them. Moreover, they are sold in slices, wich remind us meat, like a sort of “fish steak”. Increasing our choice means not only to relieve the pressure on the most damaged species but also to enrich our gastronomic culture. At the end of the dinner will be offered a guide to an eco-aware buying of fish species offered by the market».

This awareness campaign has a very important role if we consider the data of Csept, the scientific, technical and economic committee for fishing, that says that only 40% of ichthyic stock of the UE are fished in a sustainable way.
Regarding “our” sea, on the 1st June 2009 the new Mediterranean regulations 1967/2006 became effective, providing for some dispositions a long period of progressive application (until 31 May 2010).But today the regulations are still not totally applied.

Maria Damanaki, current commissioner of Commission for Maritime affairs and Fisheries of the UE, affirms that there are no excuses for the current incomplete implement of regulations adopted in December 2006 «The states members have had more than tree years to prepare themselves to the attainment of all the regulations that, we must remember, they have all approved in 2006 – said the commissioner – the situation of many stocks in the Mediterranean sea is worrying and fishermen have ever less fishes to fish. If the regulations were really important in 2006, now they can’t be postponed».

How transform the market? It’s possible transforming the demand, that’s come from a mindful consume. “ConsuMare…” make you mindful eating: the sea and the taste buds will thank you.