Eat more fish, urges Nordic Council study

The Nordic Council, which represents major salmon farming countries such as Norway, Iceland and the Faroe Islands, has produced a report urging people to eat more fish to help improve their health.

The report was compiled by a group of specialist researchers at the request of the Council which asked them to look at a diet that is good for both health and the environment.

They have produced the sixth edition of The Nordic Nutrition Recommendations, which is the biggest update to date in the report’s 40-year history.

It is also being heralded as the most comprehensive scientific basis globally for how people should eat better, both for the good of the planet and for individual health.

The advice is clear when it comes to seafood – consume 300g-450g (cooked or ready-to-eat) of fish each week. At least 200g should be oily fish, such as herring, mackerel and salmon.

Professor Rune Blomhoff at the University of Oslo, who has led the work on the report, emphasised the importance of a “blue” diet.

He said: “With the report, we get a scientific basis that shows that a healthy diet is often also sustainable. Many and large synergies can be achieved between health and the environment in the necessary restructuring of our food consumption.”

The Nordic Council refers to the Scientific Committee for Food and the Environment (VKM) which indicates that consumption of seafood provides strong evidence for a lower risk of cardiovascular disease, heart attack and stroke.

Seafood Norway CEO Geir Ove Ystmark said: “The new Nordic dietary advice is very clear: ‘Eat more seafood’. I expect Norwegian politicians to listen to what these Nordic scientists say, and take action to facilitate more seafood production.”