Sustainable seafood on park board menu

Prawns and Atlantic cod should not be sold at restaurants and concessions in Vancouver parks, says a new staff report on sustainable seafood that goes to the park board Monday night.

The report says only seafood caught in an an environmentally friendly way, and not from an endangered species, should be soldat park board food concessions and golf courses.

It also recommends that leased private restaurants in city parks be asked to purchase sustainable seafood whenever possible.

Atlantic cod is in short supply, and there's no environmentally friendly way to harvest or catch prawns, says the report.

If the board approves,Atlantic cod would be replaced on menus by Pacific and Alaskan cod,and the prawns by calamari.

"You know, we won't have fish on our table anymore unless we reform our practices," said Commission Spencer Herbert who first raised the issue.

"So, it just made so much sense.It won't cost us anymore to do the right thing.So, why wouldn't we be doing it?"

The chef at the privately-owned Watermark restaurant on Kitsilano Beach said the change will be difficult, as it's almost impossible not to serve prawns to her customers.

"Our second [most] popular dish is the rock salt chili prawns, and we do everything else to try and offset it.But it just doesn't work that way," said Lynda Laroche.

With the exception of the prawns, Laroche said her restaurant only serves sustainable seafood.

Herbert said the board won't force its tenants like the Watermark to stop serving prawns or Atlantic cod if it hurts their bottom line.