Andy Sharpless is the CEO of Oceana, the world's largest international organization dedicated to ocean conservation. Previously he began Discovery.com and helped launch RealNetworks. He lives in Maryland.
Suzannah Evans is a North Carolina-based journalist and Oceana's former editorial director.
Available on NOOK devices and apps
Want a NOOK? Explore Now
The planet will be home to more than 9 billion people by 2050, and we're already seeing critical levels of famine around the world mirrored by growing obesity in developed nations. In The Perfect Protein, Andy Sharpless maintains that protecting wild seafood can help combat both issues, because seafood is the healthiest, cheapest, most environmentally friendly source of protein on earth. While the conservation community has taken a simplistic, save-the-whales approach when it comes to oceans, Sharpless contends that we must save the world's seafood not just to protect marine life and biodiversity but to stave off the coming humanitarian crisis.
With high demand for predator species like tuna and salmon, wealthy nations like the U.S. convert "reduction" species such as anchovies, mackerel, and sardines into feed for salmon and other farmed animals--even though these overlooked fish are pakcked with health-boosting Omega-3 fatty acids and could feed millions. By establishing science-based quotos, protecting wild habitats, and reducing bycatch (and treating anchovies and their like as food, not feed), Sharpless believes that effective ocean stewardship can put healthy, sustainable seafood on the table forever. To that end, Oceana has tapped 20-plus chefs, including Mario Batali, Eric Ripert, and Jose Andres for recipes that give us all a role to play in this revolutionary mission: to save the fish so that we can eat more fish.
“In a world where obesity rates are skyrocketing as famine levels are rising, it's more important than ever to preserve a food source that can help remedy both of these crises. The Perfect Protein presents an incisive and fascinating addition to the debate on how best to do that.” —DAVID A. KESSLER, MD, author of The End of Overeating and former commissioner of the US Food and Drug Administration
“We want to preserve our oceans not just because they are filled with nature's wonders, but because they are also filled with a sustainable food source that can feed our hungry planet. The Perfect Protein offers a wise and wonderful new way to think about ocean conservation.” —Alexandra Cousteau
“Saving our oceans will ensure that future generations have access to one of the healthiest, most affordable, and sustainable protein sources on the planet. Anyone who cares about solving world hunger and saving jobs needs to read this book!” —Ted Danson
“Throughout the years when many others failed to give the ocean the attention it deserves, Andrew Sharpless has been a consistent and resonant voice for the conservation of our seas. The Perfect Protein is his clear-eyed and thought-provoking manifesto.” —Paul Greenberg, author of Four Fish: The Future of the Last Wild Food
“Andrew Sharpless has hit on the essential point, not how to stop fishing but how to make it work so we can benefit from it. This is an important concept.” —Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod: A Biography of the Fish that Changed the World
“This is the perfect ocean book for seafood lovers. Sharpless shows how, if we do a few simple things, we can save the fish so we have more of them to eat. And we must, because so many people around the world depend on fish!” —Eric Ripert, Chef, Le Bernardin
“A powerful reminder that people have depended on the oceans since time immemorial--and we could for a long time to come if we were careful, not reckless and greedy.” —Bill McKibben, author of Earth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet
Get Free eBook Sample