A man buys meat at a butcher's stand in Moscow's Dorogomilovsky market in 2011. On Monday, Russia began blocking U.S. meat imports until those imports are ractopamine-free.
Originally published on Thu February 14, 2013 1:36 pm
Chances are, you've never heard of ractopamine. But as of Monday, U.S. meat exports to Russia — worth $500 million dollars a year — have been suspended, all because of this obscure chemical.
Russian officials say American meat products won't be allowed into their country unless the meat is certified free of ractopamine.
Dennis Roseman, left, and Jamie Manganello pull in a swordfish off the coast of Florida. The Day Boat Seafood company went through a complicated process to become certified as a sustainable fishery by the Marine Stewardship Council.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Capt. Tim Palmer leads an overnight swordfishing trip off the coast of Florida near Stuart, Fla. The Day Boat Seafood company now sells their swordfish to Whole Foods and can charge more for it, now that they have been certified as sustainable by the MSC.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Manganello sets buoys while swordfishing with Palmer. They usually fish with 10-12 buoys that stretch for a mile or two, which have to be repeatedly checked throughout the night for bites.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Glow sticks are cracked to be tied to fishing lines.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Roseman (left) and Manganello set buoys in the water.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
A swordfish on the desk of the boat. Day Boat Seafood's owners say the process of getting certified cost more than $200,000. But they say it's been good for business.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Workers in Fort Pierce, Fla., unload thousands of pounds of catch from a long-line boat that was out for 10 days.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Day Boat Seafood says since getting certified as sustainable, they can now sell their swordfish for 10 percent more than competitors who aren't certified.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Dylan Rivera (left) and Travis Nachreiner lift a large swordfish out of the boat.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Tags mark the weight and tracking information on a swordfish. Every swordfish that Day Boat catches can carry the MSC label at supermarkets.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Workers unload thousands of pounds of fish from a long-line boat.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Fisheries that are certified as sustainable says they do not overfish, that they protect other kinds of life in the ocean, and that managers keep track of the latest research and adjust methods to minimize environmental impact.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Dennis Roseman (left) and Jamie Manganello pull in a swordfish off the coast of Florida. The Day Boat Seafood company went through a complicated process to become certified as a sustainable fishery by the Marine Stewardship Council.
Credit Phil Monckton / Courtesy of Marine Stewardship Council
Rupert Howes is the CEO of the Marine Stewardship Council, an international nonprofit that has pledged to promote fisheries that protect the oceans.
Credit Chip Litherland for NPR
Day Boat Seafood co-owners Scott Taylor (left) and Howard Bubis watch workers unload thousands of pounds of catch from a long-line boat that was out for 10 days at their boathouse in Fort Pierce, Fla.
Part three of a three-part series by Daniel Zwerdling and Margot Williams.
The long, clunky-looking fishing boat pulls up to Day Boat Seafood's dock near Fort Pierce, Fla., after 10 days out in the Atlantic. The crew lowers a thick rope into the hold, and begins hoisting 300-pound swordfish off their bed of ice and onto a slippery metal scale.
A sockeye salmon that was caught from the research vessel Miss Delta off the coast of Vancouver is examined. The MSC has certified the fish as "sustainable" even though there is concern from scientists and environmentalists.
Credit Brett Beadle for NPR
Capt. Gordon Botkin, aboard the Miss Delta in the Fraser River near Vancouver, is helping researchers study the sockeye salmon population. The MSC recently certified sockeye as "sustainable," even though scientists argue that their population is declining.
Credit Courtesy of Marine Stewardship Council
Rupert Howes is CEO of the Marine Stewardship Council. He says that the MSC has set up its certification system to be as objective, scientific and independent as possible.
Credit Brett Beadle for NPR
Mike Donaldson takes scale samples from a sockeye salmon as part of research for the Pacific Salmon Commission. The commission is a joint body formed by the U.S. and Canadian governments to conserve, manage and encourage production of Pacific salmon.
Part two of a three-part series by Daniel Zwerdling and Margot Williams.
Next time you walk up to the seafood counter, look for products labeled with a blue fish, a check mark, and the words "Certified Sustainable Seafood MSC." Then ask yourself, "What does this label mean?"
Originally published on Wed February 13, 2013 2:52 pm
There's a global campaign to force meat producers to rein in their use of antibiotics on pigs, chickens and cattle. European countries, especially Denmark and the Netherlands, have taken the lead. The U.S. is moving, haltingly, toward similar restrictions.
Capt. Art Gaeten holds a blue shark that was caught during a research trip in Nova Scotia. Scientists are studying the impact of swordfish fishing methods on the shark population.
Credit Tim Lofthouse / Courtesy of the Marine Stewardship Council
Rupert Howes is CEO of the Marine Stewardship Council. "We want to see the global oceans transformed onto a sustainable basis," he tells NPR.
Credit Margot Williams / NPR
Swordfish from Canada are marked with a label from the Marine Stewardship Council at a Whole Foods in Washington, D.C. The MSC says its label means the fish were caught by a sustainable fishery, but critics says it's not always so clear.
Credit Dean Casavechia for NPR
Capt. Art Gaeten holds a blue shark caught off the coast of Nova Scotia during a research outing. Studies show that 35 percent of sharks caught by swordfish boats die either on the hook or within days of release.
Credit Dean Casavechia for NPR
Steve Campana runs the Canadian Shark Research Laboratory. He works to tag sharks with satellite transmitters to find out how long they survive after being caught and released.
Credit Dean Casavechia for NPR
Shark charter operator Art Gaeten (right) and recreational shark fisherman Shawn Knowles struggle to hold a blue shark in position while shark biologist Anna Dorey attaches a satellite tag to its back. Researchers say about five blue sharks are caught for every one swordfish. Scientists are trying to determine what happens to the sharks after they are released.
Part one of a three-part series by Daniel Zwerdling and Margot Williams.
Rebecca Weel pushes a baby stroller with her 18-month-old up to the seafood case at Whole Foods, near ground zero in New York. As she peers at shiny fillets of salmon, halibut and Chilean sea bass labeled "certified sustainable," Weel believes that if she purchases this seafood, she will help protect the world's oceans from overfishing.
