The Most Important Fish in the Sea

Regionally, they're known
as bunkers, pogies or fat-backs... but they're officially called
menhaden.

Today, one company-Omega Protein-has a monopoly on the menhaden
"reduction industry." Every year it sweeps billions of fish from the
sea, grinds them up, and turns them into animal feed, fertilizer, and
oil used in everything from linoleum to health-food supplements.

The
massive harvest wouldn't be such a problem if menhaden were only good
for making lipstick and soap. But they are crucial to the diet of
bigger fish and they filter the waters of the Atlantic and Gulf coasts,
playing an essential dual role in marine ecology perhaps unmatched
anywhere on the planet. As their numbers have plummeted, fish and birds
dependent on them have been decimated and toxic algae have begun to
choke our bays and seas. 

Via: AlterNet LINK