(August 7, 2007) - The Humane Society of the United States (The HSUS) is proud to announce overwhelming support for ending Canada’s commercial seal hunt from over 60 of South Florida’s most prominent restaurants and seafood companies, all of which are pledging not to sell some or all Canadian seafood until the seal hunt ends permanently.
The HSUS launched the seafood boycott in March 2005 by asking consumers and restaurateurs to avoid Canadian seafood as a way of ending the annual seal hunt. To date, over 2,600 restaurants and other seafood businesses in the U.S. have pledged support for the boycott and have switched some or all of their Canadian seafood to non-Canadian sources.
"It is wonderful to have the support of such talented chefs from some of the most renowned restaurants in the state of Florida," says Pat Ragan, director of The HSUS’ Protect Seals campaign. "They share our concern about this senseless slaughter and are proud to use their buying power to send a message to Canada that this hunt must end now."
Over 215,000 baby seals were clubbed and shot to death for their fur in eastern Canada this past spring. The vast majority were under three months of age at the time they were killed.
The links between the sealing industry and Canada’s fishing industry extend well beyond the fact that the same governmental agency oversees both industries.
Fishing companies run several of the seal processing plants, seal hunters are commercial fishermen, the seal hunt is carried out in boats that are used primarily to harvest seafood, and fisheries unions represent sealers, explains Ragan, who notes that many seafood companies located in non-sealing provinces purchase and sell seafood from the sealing provinces, often inter-mingling this seafood with their own.
“By boycotting Canadian seafood, Florida restaurants are making clear to Canada’s fishing industry that their participation in and support of Canada’s commercial seal hunt has market consequences,” adds Ragan.
The list of south Florida restaurants that have joined the Protect Seals campaign reads like a who’s who of the state’s restaurant industry. It includes the Palme d’ Or Restaurant, Harry’s Grill, Pascal’s on Ponce, Eduardo de San Angel, Casa D’Angelo Ristorante, Café Chardoney in Palm Beach Gardens and Bice Ristorante in Palm Beach.
“I believe it is a good thing to not purchase Canadian seafood. We are doing it to protect the baby seals and also the seafood that is being hurt by the seal hunt," says Chef Philippe Ruiz of the renowned Palme d’ Or Restaurant in the luxurious Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables.
Chef Ruiz, recognized as the Best Hotel Chef by the James Beard Foundation in 2002, he is also a 2007 Golden Spoon award recipient and recently received the Chevalier du Merite Agricole, one of the highest awards bestowed by the French Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, for excellence in representing French culture and gastronomy in the U.S.
“There is no reason to kill baby seals. We must think about our children and the kind of world we want to leave them. I hope other chefs will join me in not buying seafood products from Canada,” says Chef Ruiz.
Elisa Gismondi-Tufano is the executive chef of Arturo’s Restaurant, one of South Florida’s most highly rated dining establishments and a recipient of the prestigious DiRoNA award for distinguished restaurants of North America.
“I am happy that many of my colleagues are also taking part in the Protect Seals campaign. It is important for chefs to send a message to the Canadian government and fishing industry that this horrible slaughter and marine mismanagement must end,” says Gismondi-Tufano.
“I am very proud to be a part of this campaign,” says eight time DiRoNA award winner, Eduardo Pria, owner of the respected Eduardo de San Angel Mexican Restaurant in Fort Lauderdale, one of the top restaurants in the country. “I am happy to take Canadian seafood off my menu to protect the seals.”
To join the boycott, restaurants have a choice of what they want to boycott. They can pledge to boycott Canadian snow crab, or all seafood from Eastern Canada or all seafood from all of Canada until the hunt ends for good.
More than two-thirds of Canadian seafood is exported to the United States, producing $2.8 billion annually for the Canadian economy. This figure dwarfs the income generated by Canada’s commercial seal hunt.
A list of all companies supporting the Protect Seals boycott is available at www.humanesociety.org/restaurantsforseals.
For more information on the campaign to save Canadian seals and to sign the boycott pledge, please visit www.humanesociety.org/protectseals.
List of Florida Restaurants and Seafood Companies:
510 Ocean, Chef amaida M. Booth Carreras, Miami Beach, FL
A Fish Called Avalon, Miami Beach, FL
Arturo's Restaurants, Chef Elisa Gismondi-Tufano, Boca Raton, FL
Athena By The Sea, Chef Elias Marchelos, Lauderdale by the Sea, FL
B.E.D. of Miami, Miami Beach, FL
Baleen Restaurant, Chef Jordan Mackey, Miami, FL
Betsy Bistro at the Betsy Ross Hotel, Chef Miriam Cordova, Miami, FL
Bice Ristorante, Chef Elmer Saravia, Palm Beach, FL
Bistro Zenith, Chef Chris Magiehicki, Boca Raton, FL
Bonsai International Inc., Chef Anont Chaleamvat, Coral Gables, FL
Bountiful Buffet, Chef Awad Ibraheim, Greenacres, FL
Brasserie Brickell Key, Chef Daniel, Miami, FL
Café Chardonnay, Chef Luis Ceballos, Palm Beach Gardens, FL
Caffe Blu, Chef Karim Hitmi, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Capri Blue Ristorante Italiano, Chef Amedeo Tasca, Palm Beach, FL
Carnevale, A Venetian Café, Chef Raffaele Puleo, Miami Beach, FL
Casa D'Angelo, Chef Angelo Elia, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Cordova Catering, Chef Miriam Cordova, Miami, FL
Creek 28, Chef Kira Volz, Miami Beach, FL
Cod and Capers Seafood Corporation, Palm Beach Gardens, FL
Eden Roc Renaissance Hotel & Spa, Chef Klaus Mueller, Miami Beach, FL
Eduardo de San Angel, Chef Eduardo Pria, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Escopazzo, Chef Giancarla Bodoni, Miami, FL
Fort Lauderdale Grande Hotel and Yacht Club, Chef Alberto M. Villa, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Ginger Grove, Coconut Grove, FL
Greenstreet Café, Coconut Grove, FL
Harry’s Grill, Chef Klaus, Miami Beach, FL
Hola Lola, Chef Masiur, Miami Beach, FL
Il Mulino, Chef Michel Mazza, Miami, FL
Japanese Villiage Steakhouse, Neil C. Puican, Fort Lauderdale, FL
Joe's Stone Crab, Miami Beach, FL
Margaritaville Cafe, Orlando, FL
Margaritaville Café, Key West, FL
Miami Beach Resort, Chef Philippe Grondin, Miami Beach, FL
Miami Crab Corp., Miami, FL
Moon River Pizza, Chef Dallas Zampkins, Fernadina Beach, FL
O Asian Grill, Miami Beach, FL
Oceanaire Seafood Room, Miami, FL
Oceanaire Seafood Room, Orlando, FL
Pacific Time, Miami Beach, FL
Palme d' Or Restaurant, Chef Ruiz Philippe, Coral Gables, FL
Pascal's on Ponce, Chef Pascal Oudion, Coral Gables, FL
Payathai Asia Cuisine, Atlantis, FL
Pelican Grand Beach Resort, Chef Migeul Marrero, Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Puchetta Restaurant, Chef Martin Puchetta, Coral Gables, FL
Ray's Keywest Grill, Chef Ray Vural, Lakeworth, FL
Renzo's Boca, Chef Cosimo, Boca Raton, FL
Rottelli, Chef Rodney Tague, Wellington, FL
Rumba Palace, Chef Oscar Lezama, Miami Beach, FL
Rustico Italiano, Chef Giuseppe Bianchette, Lake Worth, FL
Saito Japanese Steakhouse, Chef Dan LamWest Palm Beach, FL
Sal's Italian Restorante, Chef Mario Padilla, Boca Raton, FL
Shizen, Chef Tom Kamioka, Fort Lauderdale, FL
Sparky's, Chef Sparky McDermott, Coral Springs, FL
Texarado Steakhouse, Chef Matthew Manley, Palm Beach Gardens, FL
Thaikyo Asian Cuisine, Manalapan, FL
The Shelborne Beach Resort, Chef Pablo Dominguez, Miami Beach, FL
The Sweet Spot, Chef Charles Kovar, Tampa, FL
Venus Seafood, Pompano Beach, FL
Wycliffe Golf & Country Club, Chef Rick TrentmanWellington, FL
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation’s largest animal protection organization – backed by 10 million Americans, or one of every 30. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education, and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty -- On the web at www.humanesociety.org.
