Dr. Ellen Pikitch:

I would not say there has been an awareness campaign per se. It could be a good idea to try to undertake such a campaign. The work that has been done has concentrated on the fate of the fish after they have been taken out of the water; for example, 90% of fish are being ground up rather than eaten. The fish that are consumed directly by people are generally more valuable - a higher price per pound is paid for them than for the fish that are ground up into fish meal and fish oil. It would be good for economics and for food security if a greater percentage of fish could be shifted to direct human consumption rather than being ground up into fish meal and fish oil. I am aware that efforts are being made in that regard. There has been a campaign in Peru to make people aware that it is okay to eat anchovies directly and to emphasise that anchovies are delicious. The authorities there have found it helpful to bring in chefs to show how to prepare anchovies in delicious new ways. The people who have been encouraged to taste this product have agreed that it tastes really good. Some people do not want to eat anchovies directly because they think they do not taste good, but they do. More and more work is being done in that regard.