Halibut is a group of three types of large flat fish and it belongs to the right eye flounder family. The three types of halibut are Pacific Halibut, North Atlantic Halibut, and Arctic Ocean Halibut.
Greenland halibut is a flatfish also popularly known as the turbot. The color is snowy white, and soft. The meat is sold and smoked as is mostly done in Europe. Some also serve it with sushi or Faroe, as a fish salad.
Halibut is one type of fish that is delicious grilled, boiled, fried, and steamed. The meat is very clean and delicious cooked with a little spice. Halibut contains omega 3, rich in micro nutrients and is a good source of protein for health.
Pacific halibut is a protein-rich fish that is a source of protein for Alaska native and Canadian first nation coastal communities. Halibut fish are caught by residents using fishing rods and there are separate times where these fish roam a lot.
See: Halibut Fish Health Benefits
Is Halibut Sustainable?
Halibut is a sustainable food and has been certified with the MSC label. So, this is a label of a fishery that has been independently assessed, meaning that the fish stock is well managed, and the impact on the environment and other species is minimized.
Businesses that handle MSC seafood must meet MSC chain of custody standards, meaning that fish and seafood sold with a blue label are seafood that comes from certified sustainable fisheries according to MSC fisheries standards. Halibut from the MSC fishery is caught using methods such as hook and line, gillnet, longline and bottom trawl.
Atlantic halibut is a limited fish and so stocks are low, as a result of overfishing in the past. To rebuild halibut stocks, this fishing must be regulated and cannot be caught of any size.
Halibut in the US Pacific and Canada is a fish stock that has met the MSC certificate. It is governed by international treaties and this has been going on for a long time and formed Halibut Pacific International in 1923.
Bonus fact for Halibut
Atlantic halibut is the largest flatfish in the world with a length of up to 4.6 meters. The largest halibut ever recorded was taken from Cape Ann, Massachusetts and weighed around 280 kilograms.
Also see: 10 Freshwater Fish that are Often Used as Delicious Dishes
MSC certified halibut
Fisheries for three types of halibut in Russia, Greenland, Iceland, Germany, Canada, and the United States are species that have been certified as sustainable. Then, 100% of greenland halibut caught in West Greenland waters by EU vessels is certified as sustainable.
Halibut with MSC certification is widely available in various parts of the world.
See: Fish with Human Teeth (Pacu)
