Previously - Low levels of Fukushima cesium found in West Coast tuna

Chefs with Issues is a platform for chefs and farmers we love, fired up for causes about which they're passionate. Virginia Willis, a graduate of L'Academie de Cuisine and Ecole de Cuisine LaVarenne, is the author of "Bon Appétit, Y’all" and "Basic to Brilliant, Y'all."

I opened up a veritable bucket of bait, not a mere can of worms, back in January with my blog post titled "Wicked Tuna: A Deal with the Devil."

"Wicked Tuna" is a reality series that premiered April 1 on the National Geographic Channel. It follows the lives of bluefin tuna fishermen in Gloucester, Massachusetts, and is produced by the same folks that produce the hit TV shows "Dirty Jobs" and "Swamp Loggers."

By many accounts, including the National Geographic website, bluefin tuna are overfished. This is where I find a huge disconnect with the National Geographic channel hosting a show about Atlantic bluefin tuna fishing.
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5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

As Earth Day, April 22, approaches, we encourage you to consider how you can reduce your carbon footprint and live more sustainably.

When you dine at restaurants — which some of us do on a daily basis — it may seem hard to eat healthfully, let alone sustainably, but this isn't necessarily true.

Clean Plates founder and nutritionist Jared Koch has some suggestions to put sustainable dining within your reach.

Five Ways to Dine More Sustainably for Earth Day ... and Every Day: Jared Koch
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April 22 is Earth Day, and there's no better way to start celebrating and protecting the planet than by taking a closer look at what's on your plate.

We're challenging everyone we know to grow one thing - just one thing - that they can eat, and of course, we're putting our money where our mouth is and planting a garden, ourselves.

You could also consider joining a CSA (that's community supported agriculture), buying direct at a farmers market, staying as local as possible, keeping a close eye on the origins of your seafood or supporting chefs who are doing the right things for the environment.

Chew on that while you explore our simple and endlessly delicious tips for eating eco-friendly.
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5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

Seafood lovers are between a rockfish and a hard place: More than 80% of the world’s fisheries are being harvested at capacity or are in decline.

In honor of Earth Day, April 22, what can consumers do to make sure their seafood choices aren’t further depleting the oceans?

Chef Takao Iinuma brings a ray of light to the matter. Iiunuma is the executive chef at Genji Sushi, the purveyors of sushi and Japanese cuisine to Whole Foods Markets.

Selecting Sustainable Fish Options for Earth Month: Takao Iinuma
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5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

When Andrew Zimmern tells us we ought to try a particular food, we screw up our courage and do it. His travels as host of "Bizarre Foods" take him to some far-out places and sometimes challenging cuisine, which he always tackles with an open mind, and a wide-open mouth.

Zimmern has seen it all, eaten most of it, and believes that with slight adaptation of the American palate, we can change the world. As he says, "You can change the world one plate at a time. If we can take better advantage of the global pantry and eat from a wider variety of choices we would do more to combat food poverty, our damaged food production system, obesity and other systemic health and wellness issues than any one single act I can imagine. Here are some suggestions, but be creative. It works."

Five Foods That Can Change the World: Andrew Zimmern
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Chefs with Issues is a platform for chefs and farmers we love, fired up for causes about which they're passionate. Chef John Ash serves on the Board of Advisors of Seafood Watch, an educational initiative for sustainable seafood by the Monterey Bay Aquarium. He recently hosted a panel discussion about seafood sustainability as a practice. Among the participants were Chef Bun Lai, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Sustainability Leader of the Year, and Yousef Ghalaini, executive chef of New York’s sustainable seafood restaurant Imperial No. Nine.

Recently, nearly 30 thought leaders in the seafood, restaurant and sustainability worlds came together to have a conversation about how chefs can embrace seafood sustainability in a greater, more mainstream way.

“Thought for Food: A Discussion on Sustainable Seafood” was facilitated by James Beard award-winning chef and author John Ash, widely respected as a sustainability pioneer. Participants came from a variety of backgrounds: chefs, NGO leaders, journalists and other members of the food industry vanguard.
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5@5 is a daily, food-related list from chefs, writers, political pundits, musicians, actors, and all manner of opinionated people from around the globe.

It's a fishy tale told all too frequently: A restaurant lists a premium fish on the menu; the customer is served a lower-quality catch; the customer pays top dollar for the type of fish they thought they were ordering; and the restaurant eventually gets netted in scandal.

Jeremy Sewall, co-owner and executive chef of Island Creek Oyster Bar in Boston, Massachusetts, wants to make sure you don't get engulfed in a case of mistaken fillet identity ever again.

Five Tips for Buying Fish: Jeremy Sewall
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Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the Gulf of Mexico, a new menace, this one striped like a big cat, is preying on aquatic life: The black tiger shrimp.

The biggest saltwater shrimp in the world, black tigers “are cannibalistic as are other shrimp but it’s larger so it can consume the others,” Tony Reisinger, country extension agent for the Texas Sea Grant Extension Service, told CNN on Friday.

Because of the threat of disease, the predatory intruder poses a problem for the native shrimp and oyster population of the Gulf, Reisinger said.

Read Giant cannibal shrimp worry Gulf Coast watchers

Making good sushi depends on a number of things, but for Silla Bjerrum, founder of British restaurant chain Feng Sushi, where her ingredients come from is key.

“I serve a lot of fish. I buy a lot of fish,” she explains. “Ten percent of my turnover is spent on buying fish, so I think I have a duty of care to the fish and the people who eat the fish.”

Each year the award-winning chef teaches small groups of enthusiastic foodies traditional and not-so-traditional sushi-making skills in one of her London restaurants.

From maki rolls to  more daring “inside-out” rolls, she offers helpful tips to like how to wash sushi rice (at least 10 to 12 times!) and how covering your sushi-rolling mat in plastic wrap will make it easier to clean up later.
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