Eco Weddings: Catering, Seafood, Sustainability

Many people are going “eco” these days, which is wonderful for the wedding & event industry!  The event industry is one of the most wasteful in the country, so as an event planner I like to do what I can to keep my weddings as green as possible.  Non-sustainable seafood has been a point of contention among eco groups for many years, and as it remains a top choice for West Coast weddings, I thought I would throw out a few easy-eco ideas for you.

When speaking to your caterers, it is a good idea to interview them about their sustainable practices, and where they source their food from.  Many caterers claim to have eco-friendly practices, however when it comes down to it, I have found that few actually follow through.  There are two in LA that I do recommend:

Large Marge Sustainables

Eco-Caterers

The Monterrey Bay Aquarium has a great guide on their website:  Seafood Watch

They break seafood down into 3 categories:

• Best Choices: Seafood in this category is abundant, well-managed and caught or farmed in environmentally friendly ways.
• Good Alternatives: These items are an option, but there are concerns with how they’re caught or farmed – or with the health of their habitat due to other human impacts.
• Avoid: Take a pass on these items for now. They are caught or farmed in ways that harm other marine life or the environment.

According to the January 2011 West Coast pocket guide the following seafood falls under their “Best Choices” catagory.

• Abalone (US farmed)
• Arctic Char (farmed)
• Barramundi (US farmed)
• Catfish (US farmed)
• Clams, Mussels, Oysters (farmed)
• Cod: Pacific (US bottom longline)
• Crab: Dungeness
• Halibut:  Pacific (US)
• Lobster: Spiny (US)
• Rockfish: Black (CA, OR, WA, hook & line)
• Sablefish/Black Cod (Alaska, BC)
• Salmon (Alaska wild)
• Sardines: Pacific (US)
• Scallops (farmed off-bottom)
• Shrimp: Pink (OR)
• Striped Bass (farmed or wild*)
• Tilapia (US farmed)
• Trout: Rainbow (US farmed)
• Tuna: Albacore including canned white tuna (troll/pole, US and BC)
• Tuna: Skipjack including canned light tuna (troll/pole)
• White Seabass

The next list is from the “Avoid” catagory:

• Caviar, Sturgeon* (imported wild)
• Chilean Seabass/Toothfish*
• Cod: Atlantic and imported Pacific Cobia (imported farmed)
• Crab: King (imported)
• Dogfish (US)*
• Lobster: Spiny (Brazil)
• Mahi Mahi/Dolphinfish (imported)
• Marlin: Blue*, Striped*
• Monkfish Orange Roughy*
• Rockfish (trawled)
• Salmon (farmed, including Atlantic)*
• Sharks*
• Shrimp (imported)
• Swordfish (imported)*
• Tilapia (Asia farmed)
• Tuna: Albacore, Bigeye, Yellowfin (longline)*
• Tuna: Bluefin*
• Tongol Tuna: Canned (except troll/pole)*

A common misconception is that being eco-friendly can cost you more, however in my experience this is not the case.  I have thrown many weddings that were “green”, and every time it ended up saving my clients money.  As a bride or groom, you can ask your planner to consider the environment when working with you on your wedding, particularly when choosing a caterer.