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How did these fish end up on the Red List?

These fish are on the Greenpeace International Seafood Red List because they have a very high risk of being sourced from unsustainable fisheries or unsustainable aquaculture operations. The table below provides a simple overview of the main reasons for red-listing species 1. For more information about each species, please check the Greenpeace International Seafood Red List. For more information about the criteria, please see the documents Red Grade Criteria for Unsustainable Fisheries and Red Grade Criteria for Unsustaiable Aquaculture.

  CATCHES VULNERABLE SPECIES USES DESTRUCTIVE FISHING METHODS OVERFISHING USES UNSELECTIVE FISHING METHODS PIRATE FISHING

CATCHES VULNERABLE SPECIES
Fishery exploits species that are highly vulnerable to fishing pressure and/or unintentionally catches and kills other endangered species like turtles, sharks or dolphins.

USES DESTRUCTIVE FISHING METHODS
Fishery uses methods that damage the seabed or impact on sensitive habitats.

OVERFISHING
The stock is overfished and/or management of the stock is failing to protect it adequately

USES UNSELECTIVE FISHING METHODS
The fishery uses methods that capture high amounts of fish that are thrown back into the sea dead or dying or it catches high amounts of immature fish.

PIRATE FISHING
In fisheries for this species pirate fishing (illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing) occurs. 2

Anglerfish or monkfish or goosefish          
Atlantic cod

          
Atlantic halibut

          
Atlantic salmon

          
Common sole

          
Eel

          
European plaice

          
Greenland halibut

          
Haddock

          
Hake

          
Hoki or blue hake or blue grenadier
          
Marlin

          
Orange roughy or deep sea perch
          
Patagonian toothfish or Chilean seabass          
Red fish or rockfish

          
Sharks

          
Skates and rays

          
Swordfish

          
Tropical shrimp/prawn

          
Tuna - main market species
         

Notes:

(1) The table above refers to the red-grading criteria for wild-caught fisheries only. Please check the species page in the Red List for more information about aquaculture issues.

(2) Pirate fishing does not lead to red-grading according to the Greenpeace 'red-grade' criteria for unsustainable fisheries, however no fish caught by owners and/or operators of vessels engaging in IUU (illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing) should be traded or sold. Please visit the pirate fishing pages and the Greenpeace 'red-grade' criteria for unsustainable fisheries for more details.

View the Red List