Pacific Whiting is fished primarily by trawlers, which are large fishing boats that drag nets along the seafloor to catch bottom-dwelling fish such as snapper and cod. This method is an efficient way to catch these fish, but it’s not the most environmentally friendly way of doing so.
Trawling puts enormous pressure on local ecosystems because it can damage or destroy coral reefs, seagrass beds, and other sensitive habitats. It also destroys parts of the seafloor habitat itself by leaving behind a trail of crushed or torn-up rocks and sediment that can choke off important spawning grounds for fish species like the Pacific whiting themselves!
Trawl fishing for whiting involves dragging a large net along the seafloor to catch bottom-dwelling fish.
The process can be accomplished by boat or from the shore, manually or with power.
Trawling is one of the most common types of fishing worldwide and accounts for about half of all seafood caught globally. It has been decried as damaging to marine ecosystems, as it causes turtles and seabirds to become entangled in nets, but trawlers have also been credited with helping bring many once-depleted species back from near extinction—including codfish, haddock, and Pollock (all names for Pacific whiting).
Whiting is soft-fleshed and mild-flavored, which is why they’re so popular for use in surimi products, fake crab meat, and frozen fish sticks.
Surimi is a seasoned fish paste that can be molded into a variety of shapes. It’s used in imitation seafood dishes such as seafood salads, crab cakes, and sushi rolls. Fake crab meat is another popular type of surimi product that comes with seasonings already added to it. Frozen fish sticks are made from the same kind of surimi as imitation seafood dishes—just shaped into chunks or sticks instead of being molded into something else entirely (like a patty). While these three types of food products may seem different from one another at first glance, they all share one thing in common: Pacific whiting as an ingredient!