Want to know where the fish you're having for dinner came from? Now it's as easy as a swipe of a bar-code.
A simple scan of a bar-code, and you have the history of your fish filet at your fingertips. From the fisherman that caught it, even the boat he used, all the way through the processing. It's all part of a pilot project called Pacific Fish Trax.
"The idea is to trace fish from the harvester or the fisherman through the processing distribution all the way back to the retail store," explained Michael Morrissey, Director of the Oregon State University Seafood Laboratory. The project is a joint venture between Oregon State University, the Community Seafood Initiative, and local fisherman.
Right now the program is just tracking local albacore tuna, but could some day expand to other fish including Salmon. Here's how it works. Each packaged albacore tuna filet has a bar-code on it. Consumers scan the bar-code at a special kiosk. Up pops a screen showing the fisherman that caught the fish, where he caught the fish and who and how it was processed. It's both a marketing tool to give a little boost to the local fishing economy and a tool to help consumers really get to know their fish. "I think there's a lot more interest now in the general populous of where their food comes from," said Morrissey.
But some find the fish tracker to be a bit unnecessary. Some like fish consumer Jeremy Stone. "It was caught in Newport by a local fisherman, which is nice, and processed here by some guy who looked like Jerry Garcia," Stone explained while watching the history of the filet he had chosen.
But others, in the wake of the recent peanut scare seem to find the information useful. "I think this gives us an excellent idea of where our fish comes from and what it goes through in processing which is important to me," said shopper Helene Green-Henry.
Since it is just pilot project, the "fish trackers" are currently only at two locations. You can find them at the New Seasons Markets on North Interstate and on Cedar Hills Boulevard. But more could soon be popping up.
"Pacific Fish Trax" also has a website. It allows you to go on-line, enter the bar-code number of the fish, and learn even *more about it. That website is .
