Top Species Icelandic began off ering
pangasius items in 2008 as an alternative to more ex- pensive haddock and cod but using the same coatings, says Jim Papadakis, director of marketing for Icelandic, another High Liner brand. He agrees that pangasius is now in a similar position to where tilapia was several years ago, with education being critical to the growth of the species. "I
think pangasius has
potential," he says, but notes that unlike some fi sh, panga- sius is seldom called out by name on menus. Bill DiMento, corporate
director of sustainability for High Liner Foods in Ports- mouth, N.H., says he has "very strong feelings" on why pangasius hasn't reached the same status as tilapia. He says the negative perceptions about aquaculture in general
A mild fl avor profi le allows pangasius to shine in dishes like fi sh tacos.
have
pangasius, have
impacted as
"attacks
from our own catfi sh market." DiMento says
there is room for both
pangasius
and farmed do- mestic catfi sh, but until eff orts to restrict imports are set aside, High Liner will con- tinue to "proceed slowly" in its investment in pangasius, while continuing to grow it through sales, promotions and educational eff orts. One way to help the spe-
cies is to continue to put an emphasis on quality control and food safety, says Di- Mento. He says most of the industry focuses on safety,
quality requirements and meeting specifi cations, but there are always some "who push the limits and make it bad for all of us." Better science, education
and the work of the Global Aquaculture Alliance have all helped improve the spe- cies and protect the environ- ment, he says. Piscatelli says FPI is pro- moting pangasius
through
October as part of an "It Pays To Be Diff erent" event, urging
foodservice opera-
tors and distributors to pro- mote pangasius over more well-known species, such as tilapia. T e promo involves rebates and recipes. QVD's December contin-
ues to see pangasius erode market
share Demand continues
from tilapia. to
in- crease, he says, "even though
*VSQ E 17' 'IVXM½IH 7YWXEMREFPI *MWLIV] [[[ QWG SVK
ECO-FRIENDLY
HOOK-N-LINE SUSHI GRADE
26 SeaFood Business July 2012
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Photo courtesy of Clear Springs Foods