Cheers to sustainable fishing & only eating fish on the green list!
On Monday evening I attended the SASSI Trailblazer Awards which was held at the beautiful Harbour House Restaurant in the V&A Waterfront.
The SASSI Trailblazer Awards aims to celebrate South African chefs who fully support & promote sustainable seafood practices in their restaurants.
I think everyone should be aware that our seafood stocks, particularly those which are over-exploited, are plummeting year-by-year and therefore we all need to do our bit in ensuring that we’re making sustainable choices when buying seafood to enjoy at home, as well as when dining out.
During the awards, which is now in its 6th year, 8 chefs were announced as the 2018 SASSI Trailblazers, 5 of which are from the Western Cape.
SASSI Programme Manager, Pavs Pillay, had the following to say about these 8 amazing chefs: “The chefs we are recognising have gone the extra mile in advocating the sustainability message. Chefs serve as the gatekeepers for the food and hospitality industry and therefore play a critical role in leading market forces, influencing popular taste and promoting ocean-friendly seafood.”
But what is the criteria for being a Trailblazer?
- The restaurant’s seafood sustainability policy;
- The effectiveness of their communication of their seafood sustainability practices to their customers, employees and suppliers;
- Their level of engagement in communicating their seafood sustainability practices to a wider audience;
- The ‘Trailblazer factor’ (those chefs and restaurants that are going the extra mile in promoting and supporting seafood sustainability).
So without further ado… here are the 8 chefs who came out tops:
- Kayla-Ann Osborn of The Chef’s Table, Durban.
- Ash Heeger of Riverine Rabbit, Cape Town.
- Glen Williams of Foxcroft, Cape Town.
- James Diack of Coobs, Johannesburg.
- Louis van Reenen from Arabella, Kleinmond.
- Lucas Carstens of Majeka House, Stellenbosch.
- Michael Cooke of Vergelegen, Somerset West.
- Xavier Francis of The Hyatt Regency, Johannesburg.
Congratulations guys (and girls). You rock!
So yeah, the next time you’re heading out for lunch or dinner, do show these chefs and their respective restaurants your love. You can also double-check that you’re only buying seafood that’s on the green list by checking out the very helpful SASSI Green, Orange & Red List over here.
xxx