Seafood Watch

Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch

Formation	1999; 25 years ago (1999)
Type	501(c)(3) Nonprofit
Focus	Sustainable seafood
Location	Monterey, California, United States
Parent organization	Monterey Bay Aquarium
Website	www.seafoodwatch.org

Seafood Watch is a sustainable seafood advisory list, and has influenced similar programs around the world. It is best known for developing science-based seafood recommendations that consumers, chefs, and business professionals use to inform their seafood purchasing decisions.

Seafood Watch is a program of the Monterey Bay Aquarium. It has roots in the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Fishing for Solutions exhibit, which ran from 1997 to 1999 and produced a menu of sustainable seafood options in their cafeteria. It was one of the first resources for sustainable seafood information together with the Audubon Society's What is a fish lover to eat? which also came out in the late 1990s.^[1] Due to its popularity, the official public outreach campaign launched in October 1999.

Seafood Watch assesses impacts on marine and freshwater ecosystems of fisheries (wild-caught) and aquaculture (farming) operations. Fishing gear and farming methods are also taken into consideration. The assessments and calculations result in an overall scoring and final rating known as a Seafood Watch Recommendation.