Balancing Seafood Consumption with Ocean Conservation

Seafood is delicious. But for those of us who love the ocean, consuming the species that come from it may spark a twinge of guilt. How do you reconcile eating the very creatures you adore? Christina Hicks, a marine conservationist and professor of environmental social science at Lancaster University, has spent her career studying how to balance ocean conservation with fishing. Her research has taken her from coral reefs to coastal markets, tracing how the global seafood trade shapes who gets fed and who gets left behind.

Environmentally destructive fishing practices such as bottom trawling, long lining, and illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing cause ecosystem damage such as seafloor scarring, mass bycatch of seabirds and marine mammals, and the unraveling of ocean food webs. And seafood is a notoriously murky supply chain, making it challenging to avoid fish caught in this way.

Much of Hick’s work centers on a global dilemma: How much can we fish out of the ocean without harming marine ecosystems and the local communities that depend on them? Many of the answers she’s found require big, institutional changes, but how Hicks thinks about eating seafood in her own life can be a helpful framework for conflicted consumers.

Nunn: You have spent your life studying how we source food from the ocean. Do you now feel conflicted about eating seafood?

Hicks: Not really. Seafood has been part of human diets for over 130,000 years, and it provides nutrients that are difficult to get elsewhere. The first evidence of seafood consumption is from South Africa, almost 100,000 years before we even left the African continent for the first time, so it's part of who we are. There are nutrients in fish that you can only get from fish. I think the two problems with the way we eat currently is that we eat too much. We don't need to eat masses of seafood.

Nunn: If someone wants to make a conscientious choice when buying seafood, what should they keep in mind?

Hicks: There are thousands of species caught or farmed in very different ways across the world, which makes it not only a complicated story but a dynamic one, as it is constantly changing. That complexity is part of its beauty, because that’s nature. Seafood is the last remaining system of wild caught food, and we should be really proud of that, not try to homogenize or simplify it.

When buying seafood, consider not just sustainability labels, but where it comes from, how it’s harvested, and who is benefiting. There are lots of great resources to help us navigate that complexity, like the Marine Stewardship Council, Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch, or the U.K.’s Marine Conservation Society fish guides can help you make informed choices, and they often suggest alternatives if a particular species is overfished. Guides like these are generally a reliable rule of thumb because they’re constantly critiqued and updating their data.

It’s also important to think about balance. Try to eat in moderation, embrace a variety of species, and be conscious of the broader environmental and social impacts of what’s on your plate.

Nunn: Do you have any “do’s and don’ts” that you stick to for seafood consumption?

Hicks: Yes, I like mussels! They’re generally sustainable and nutritious, as long as you’re not allergic. I also tend to favor sardines, especially tinned, because they’re nutrient-rich, widely available, and last a long time.

I do not eat farmed salmon or sea bass because they rely on wild fish for feed, often small pelagic species such as whiting. Because of global demand, fish that were once sold cheaply in local West African markets are now diverted to fishmeal factories, supporting aquaculture in wealthier countries. This shift puts pressure on critical nutrient supplies for local communities.

I do really like octopus, and in many cases they can be super sustainable because of their fast life span, depending on where it’s sourced and managed. Rotational closures in Madagascar have successfully allowed populations to recover while supporting local communities.

Nunn: What’s something people often forget about seafood?

Hicks: It includes so much more than just fish. Seaweeds, other marine plants, and invertebrates are all super nutritious and healthy. Seaweed in particular is often more sustainable than many traditional seafood choices, can provide important nutrients, and can even help restore marine ecosystems.

Overall, I try to eat a diverse range of seafood—not only for health, but because dietary diversity mirrors ecological diversity, which is good for the planet as well.

Nunn: How will climate change affect fisheries and seafood? Are there particularly vulnerable species we should avoid so that we don’t put them more at risk as their environment changes?

Hicks: Reducing carbon output is the only real way to protect healthy fish populations from climate change. Higher-latitude regions may see new species appear, like octopus in the U.K., but the most vulnerable communities in the tropics will face the greatest losses. These are places that have contributed least to emissions but have high nutrient gaps. The climate aspect adds another grotesque injustice to the food system.

Nunn: How can consumers make a positive impact? Are there ways for us to positively engage with environmental justice through current systems?

Hicks: It’s really difficult to know what to do as a consumer in America or the U.K., for example, to address an injustice that has been created by global food systems. Citizens can advocate for better oversight, fair trade practices, and policies that protect local communities’ access to nutritious food.

Even small actions like prioritizing locally caught or responsibly farmed seafood and pushing for reform at a systemic level can collectively shift the industry toward a more ethical and sustainable path. Paired with broader systemic change, at an individual level consumers can use seafood guides to make more informed, sustainable choices, diversify diets, and moderate consumption to reduce pressure on overfished species. And they can support policies and organizations that promote transparency in fisheries, fair labor practices, and equitable food distribution.