ROCHESTER, NY – Bronzini and orata — two fish prized by Mediterranean peoples for centuries — are now products of the United States available at Wegmans Food Markets within 24 hours of harvest, thanks to a new partnership with Local Ocean. This innovative company has pioneered environmentally sensitive ways to raise fish, conserving water, minimizing waste and reducing fuel dependence, while supplying premium fish grown under pristine conditions. These two kinds of fish have sweet, semi-firm white meat with a flavor profile similar to red snapper, and they’re available year-round.
The bronzini and orata from Local Ocean are raised in buildings on farmland near Albany, NY. Inside is a completely enclosed ecosystem, where the purest saltwater circulates constantly through filters that trap waste. Beneficial bacteria in the filters and hydroponically grown plants consume the waste, so there’s none to dispose of.
“We are truly excited about this,” said Carl Salamone, vice president of seafood at Wegmans. “It’s a big win for our customers and for the environment, every way you look at it. These fish are absolutely delicious. We can harvest them without depleting ocean fish populations, and the indoor ecosystem in which they grow is a model of environmental sustainability. And because they’re raised in the US within a few hours from most Wegmans stores, less fuel is needed to bring the fish to market than when ordering from overseas.”
Global demand for seafood is rising: the human population is growing and so is the world’s appetite for fish as a heart-healthy source of protein. The planet’s oceans can’t meet that demand. Already, environmental advocates argue, overfishing is driving too many marine species to the edge of extinction.
When aquaculture (farmed seafood) facilities operate in an environmentally sensitive manner, they help protect the oceans while offering people a highly nourishing food. Today, about half the fish eaten around the world is farmed. Shrimp, salmon, tilapia, catfish, rainbow trout, clams and oysters are among the farmed species sold at Wegmans.
Wegmans has played an ongoing role in fostering standards for aquaculture that protect the surrounding environment. In 2005, Wegmans worked with the Environmental Defense Fund and Marine Harvest, a major producer of farmed salmon, to set new standards to reduce or eliminate environmental problems associated with farmed King salmon. “That was unprecedented at the time,” Salamone says, “and applauded by organizations working to protect the oceans.”
Wegmans has formed partnerships with fish farms in Canada, Thailand and South America to supply much of the seafood it sells. “We look for partners that share our values,” he says. “We want to see that they offer superb quality seafood, grown in a way that respects the region’s wildlife and minimizes problems such as pollution and waste. We visit their operations to understand them well before we partner with them.”
A Time magazine cover article published in July 2011 noted that aquaculture has grown faster than any other form of food production in the last 50 years. It yielded less than a million tons in 1950 but more than 52 million tons in 2008. Aquaculture systems that mimic nature, in which other plants or animals consume waste from farmed fish, are considered a state-of-the-art solution to raising fish sustainably.
One more advantage to working with Local Ocean, Salamone says, is that more Wegmans employees who work in seafood can have in-person visits that deepen their understanding of how these fish are produced, and what solutions aquaculture can offer to feeding a hungry planet.
Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. is a 78-store supermarket chain with stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, and Maryland. Its first New England store will open in Northborough, Massachusetts in October 2011. The family-owned company, founded in 1916, is recognized as an industry leader and innovator. Wegmans has been named one of the ‘100 Best Companies to Work For’ by FORTUNE magazine for fourteen consecutive years. In 2011, Wegmans ranked #3 on the list.
Source: Wegmans Food Markets, Inc.