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Common name - Whiting
Scientific name - Merlangius merlangus
Average rating
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Visit Fishonline for the full range of options available for this species.
Consumer Information
Whiting is a slender bodied, sandy, blue-green coloured fish with conspicuous white sides and belly, silvery when alive. It is a member of the Gadoid family, the same as cod and haddock. Whiting are a low value species and often discarded in large quantities. North East Atlantic Whiting stocks are overfished and scientific advice is to reduce catches to lowest possible level, and this should include incidental bycatch. Whiting has a firm white flesh and is best used very fresh. Sold whole or filleted, fresh or frozen. Also dried, salted and smoked. Avoid eating immature fish (less than 30cm), and fresh (not previously frozen) fish caught during the spawning season (March-April).
Summary
Whiting from the Celtic Sea is the most sustainable option for this species as the stock there is assessed as having full reproductive capacity and it is harvested sustainably. Whiting are mainly a bycatch species and fisheries suffer from high discard rates. Even whiting above the MLS (27cm) have been observed to be discarded, due to their low market value and sometimes due to quota restrictions. Where whiting is taken in trawl fisheries for Nephrops, which are less selective for whitefish, discarding rates can be as high as 80%. The mandatory use of more selective fishing gears is required to reduce the amount of whiting being discarded if the fisheries are to become sustainable. Ask for, and only eat, whiting from trawlers using approved methods to improve selectivity and reduce discards.
Alternatives
(Based on method of production, fish type, and consumer rating: only fish rated 3 and below are included.)
Visit Fishonline, the website for the seafood industry, for more detailed information about this species.