Tuna to Go

British sandwich shop chain Pret a Manger became the first chain this week to ban net-caught fish in its shops. The inspiration? Owner Julian Metcalfe watched The End of the Line, a documentary on intensive fishing methods employed to catch yellowfin and bluefin tuna, the types the chain currently uses. (The film — which predicts the end of seafood as we know it by 2048 if fishing methods don’t change — is screening in select cities starting this month.)

 

Pret, which sells some 64,000 tuna products a week, will make the change from July. Marks & Spencer, which sells 20,000 tuna sandwiches a week, followed suit by promising to sell only sustainably-sourced fish.

 

Greenpeace applauded the moves and called on other chains to switch to pole- and line- caught tuna. It says the endangered bluefin species is often caught up in nets by fishermen trying to catch the more plentiful skipjack tuna. Starbucks, Subway and EAT have so far refused to confirm their tuna is line-caught.

 

Celebrities aren’t often caught at sandwich shop chains, but they’re getting in on the fight. Elle Macpherson, Sting and Sienna Miller are among the boldface names boycotting Nobu restaurants after ownership refused to stop using bluefin tuna in sushi. Sounds like it's time for someone to change their, um, tuna.

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Courtney Rubin is a freelance writer living in London.

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