Eat Cows Not Lions - Mission Blue

June 13, 2012

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At last night’s National Geographic Explorers Live event, Explorer in Residence, Dr. Enric Sala urged people to “eat cows instead of lions.”

Speaking as part of a panel led by National Geographic journalist Boyd Manson, Dr. Sala explained the importance of eating lower on the marine food chain to ensure the long-term health of the world’s ocean.

Other panelists included National Geographic Fellow and bestselling author Dan Buettner as well as Emerging Explorers Lucy Cooke and Barrington Irving.

Through the evening Sala, Buettner, Cook and Barrington shared stories and lessons learned in the field — The Explorers spoke about licking frogs to determine if they were poisonous, encountering sand storms while flying solo around the world, and figuring out where the “happiest” people in the world live.

Besides these insightful anecdotes, much of the panel’s discussion focused on the future of the world’s ocean.

Dr. Sala lead the discussion surrounding the oceans describing growing up watching famed oceanographer Jacques Cousteau, his first experience scuba diving in a marine protected area, the issue of shifting baselines, and the need to reexamine the way we interact with the worlds oceans.

Dr. Sala spoke of his frustration over what humans are doing to the world’s ocean saying, “Our footprint in the ocean is so large that we have essentially run out of ocean.” With only the most remote or ice-covered waters not fished, much of the problem lies in human consumption and our appetite for what he dubbed as the “lions of the sea.” “On land no one would think of eating lions or tigers, but these are the kinds of things that we like to eat from the sea: tuna, large groupers and shark.”

The message was not all doom and gloom though, Dr. Sala also outlined ways to achieve a sustainable future for the ocean — start eating cows (of the ocean) rather than its “lions.” When choosing to consume seafood we can be more conscious of our choices and begin eating animals that are lower on the food chain. “Eat more mussels and oysters,” urged Dr. Sala.

Long-term, Dr. Sala suggested that creating sustainable aquaculture systems is critical to ensuring that sufficient protein continues to be available to the world’s ever-increasing population. He reminded the audience that fishing is not harvesting and we have to become informed when it comes to consuming seafood. He explained, “Fishing is large-scale hunting and the ocean cannot support this level of consumption.”

Dr. Sala wrapped up his contribution to the panel by citing inspiring examples of marine habitats that have successfully recovered from total degradation. The world’s ocean has an amazing capacity to restore and replenish itself. We are all reminded that we must be conscious of our actions and how they affect the ocean. When it comes to eating seafood, remember Dr. Sala’s message— eat the cows of the sea, not its lions!

 

Above photo: National Geographic event image.

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