By Grand Rapids Anonymous
Monday, June 20, 2022 at 4:09:00 P.M. EDT
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (wood) — Asian carp have made headlines across the Midwest for more than a decade — a looming threat that could cripple the Great Lakes ecosystem. Scientists and engineers have been able to hold off the invasive fish and now they are taking a new step in the fight — a new name.
This week, the illinois department of natural resources plans to introduce a new name for the fish that sounds more appetizing and encourages people to target the fish for consumption.
“We’re trying to make the name more attractive, so people will be more inclined to purchase them and have them for table fare, have them for dinner,” John Rogner, the assistant director of the illinois department of natural resources, told wttw-tv in Chicago.
Dirk Fucik, who owns a gourmet fish shop in Chicago, didn’t give any specifics but has a basic of [sic] idea for the new name.
“(Something) simple, short and not carp,” he told wttw.
[GRA: Or Asian, (chuckle)].
The discussion around a name change is nothing new. In 2014, Minnesota’s state legislature approved a motion to have state agencies refer to the name as the “invasive carp.” In the wake of the covid-19 pandemic, with a [non-existent] spike in anti-Asian hate crimes, more agencies worked on a name change. The u.s. fish & wildlife service changed the name last year.
“We wanted to move away from any terms that cast Asian culture and people in a negative light,” Charlie Wooley, Director of the USFWS Great Lakes Region, told the associated press.
GRA: Even invasive fish receive reputation upgrades—everything does but White people. This particular species was supposed to wipe out every other fish in the water. Now,it’s described as delicious—but more importantly, will not be called “Asian.” A similar public relations move to make blacks look better to the public has been ongoing for years. If it can work with them—why not Asian carp as well?
--GRA
jerry pdx
ReplyDeleteFrom what I've read about Asian carp, they actually aren't bad eating because unlike most other carp species, they aren't bottom feeders but subsist on algea. However, they are very bony and require a fair amount of effort to get the meat off of them. Asians solve that problem by cooking them to the point the bones simply disintegrate but I'm not sure Americans are going to want to go through that effort. Reality is, like all invasive species, they are here to stay so we have to live with them. I wonder if the people responsible for bringing them here to control algea ever were prosecuted for their stupidity.
Interestingly, or ironically, bass were introduced into Japan by bass fishing enthusiasts and are now considered an invasive pest species by the Japanese government. https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/japan-bass-fishing/156907
Okay,not carp--how about CRAP.An Asian Crapfish.
ReplyDeleteI'll wait for my monetary reward to come in the mail for that suggestion.
--GRA
What they need to do is make lemonade out of lemons with the carp. Catch and flash freeze and send to Japan. That will be a delicacy for them. Make money where you can.
ReplyDelete