The nearby Bukit Tinggi Village has a number of seafood restaurants. On certain occasions, a few of them would offer that special, fresh, recently caught ‘river fish’. Certainly more expensive than the farmed ones that come from Bentong or the other side of the highway. For good reasons they say. As the fish was not farmed, it is a healthier option and certainly tastier. Some would just jump at the opportunity of savoring that rare river fish at any cost.
However, I think that’s being irresponsible. River fish as well as sea fishes have been overfished so much that certain species have dwindled to population levels that are deemed unsustainable. Similar to the impact of the consumption of turtle eggs on turtle population and shark fins on the shark population.
So, how do we know which type of fish shall we order for our next meal? Finally, we have a guide. WWF Malaysia and the Malaysian Nature Society have together issued a Malaysian Sustainable Seafood Guide. This guide which can be found at www.saveourseafood.my. It classifies the types of seafood to (1) Avoid (2) Think Twice (3) Recommended and (4) Marine Stewardship Council Certified.
As for river fishes, I would avoid all fishes that are expensive and rare. I have not come across a guide for river fishes yet, but to support a sustainable river fish population, we should only order river fishes that are commonly offered or farmed.
