Ben Reynolds
Editor of The Jellied Eel

Ben Reynolds is Editor of The Jellied Eel, the quarterly magazine for ethical and sustainable food in London, distributed free of charge to over 80 locations around the city. London Food Link runs a network of organisations and individuals who care about sustainable food. Its members are as diverse as farmers and food writers, caterers and community food projects.

Why do you think sustainable fish is important?

There are many important aspects of sustainable food. But timing is key. Fish currently has momentum, and is near to tipping point on widespread adoption of more sustainable practices around the UK. The need for action is urgent, with stocks of many fish species at an all-time low. The simplicity of the subject means that it is relatively easy to communicate what needs to happen, and for consumers, business and government to take action.

What would you like food businesses to do about the fish they serve?

The "what" part is simple – follow what the Sustainable Fish City campaign is calling for. The more difficult bit is "how" – as this will mean many businesses having to ask their suppliers to change the fish they get, or potentially change suppliers. Plenty of businesses have done this already. I would like to see businesses communicating to their customers what they’re serving. Not every business likes to shove sustainability in their customers' faces (even despite customer calls for more information) but there are other ways of publicising good practice – whether it’s on the website, or even on the end of receipts.

What has The Jellied Eel done to support sustainable fish?

The Jellied Eel is proud to back the Sustainable Fish City campaign and focused on the public launch of the campaign in Issue 30 (January 2011).  As well as covering the success of the campaign over the coming issues, we have undertaken an exposé of the state of the Capital’s fish sandwiches. We sent out surveyors to ask about the source of fish in their sandwiches. They received the most amazingly unhelpful answers - the fish came "from a packet", "from a tin", and even "from Euston"!

Read the full article on The Jellied Eel website, or a summary in The Jellied Eel's accompanying press release.

The sandwich is a great leveller, something eaten by everyone and affordable to all. The aims of the campaign to avoid fish that are 'at risk', or go that bit further by actively choosing fish from sustainable sources, are quite achievable through the humble sandwich. We hope that with a little pressure, dodgy fish sandwiches of unknown origin will increasingly become a thing of the past in the Capital.

Find out more about The Jellied Eel magazine

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  Allegra McEvedy MBE, chef, writer and presenter
  "To stand by and do nothing, say nothing as we slowly drain the oceans of their livestock is to make one complicit, and that's just not a position with which I was comfortable."

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  Caroline Bennett, Moshi Moshi
  "I am determined to do something about the way we fished the seas. We know the problems, we don’t even need any additional information to know how to fix them: we just have to get on and do it. No excuses."

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  Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, Fish Fight
  “I have been travelling around the UK meeting fishermen, marine conservationists, politicians, supermarkets bosses, and of course fish-eating members of the public. It has changed the way I think about fish.”

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  Raymond Blanc OBE, Chef Patron, Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons
  “Good ethics should be part of everyday business. Many restaurants and caterers in this are helping to protect our precious marine resources. They should get rightful recognition and inspire others to do the same.”

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  Rosie Boycott, London Food Board
  "Taking a sustainable approach to fish is critical to the food security of our city. It is shocking to think that within our lifetimes, we could lose some of our favourite species from the seas forever."

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  Silla Bjerrum, Feng Sushi
  "Ensuring the future supply of fish is very important. Eating fish can be a component of a healthy lifestyle. Future generations rely on us to pass on healthy seas and maintain biodiversity."

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  Tim Hughes, Caprice Holdings
  "It’s our duty to impart our knowledge to a wider audience, so everybody realises how important it is to cherish our fish stocks. I will continue to champion lesser-known species in plentiful and sustainable supply."