All About Buying Fish and Seafood at ALDI

New to buying fish at ALDI? Here’s what they have to offer–plus some good news about their commitment to sustainability.

Thanks to ALDI for sponsoring this post!

I fancy myself something of an ALDI guru, so imagine my shock when a friend reached out recently via email with a pretty simple question: “What can you tell me about the fresh salmon at ALDI?”

Um, excuse me…what fresh salmon at ALDI?!

For as much of a regular I am at my local ALDI store, I somehow missed this exciting development.

Something else I didn’t know about: The commitment ALDI has to sustainability when it comes to its fish and seafood. Sustainability is important to a lot of us—and I know I’m not alone when I say that concerns about it can make grocery shopping even more confusing.

So with the help of the folks at ALDI, I dug into the topic and got up to speed—and I wanted to share what I know now, so you can be a better-informed ALDI shopper too. For my friend who emailed me about the fresh salmon (and for all of you!) here’s the scoop:

ALDI sells fresh fish every day.

Newsflash (at least to me): It’s true! ALDI started carrying fresh fish last year. You’ll find it in the same section as their fresh meat and poultry, and it’s available every day. They stock varieties like Atlantic salmon and tilapia (both plain and pre-seasoned), and their fresh fish has never been frozen.

ALDI carries frozen, chilled, and shelf-stable fish and seafood too.

You’ll find items like canned and pouch tuna on shelves. In the refrigerated section, ALDI carries fish fillets like Sea Queen Fresh Atlantic Salmon and tilapia, ready-to-cook breaded fish, and scallops. In the freezer case, you can snag shrimp (raw or cooked). On a recent shopping trip, I spied packages of frozen crab legs.

ALDI is committed to sustainability when buying fish and seafood.

ALDI is dedicated to buying all of its fish and shellfish products from responsibly managed fisheries and farms that have minimal impacts on the marine environment. You’ll spot a Marine Stewardship Council “Certified Sustainable Seafood” tag on shelves (that means the product comes from a certified sustainable fishery) and a “Best Aquaculture Practices Certified” badge on some of the packages (that indicates the highest standards for seafood processing, farms, hatcheries, and feed mills). ALDI has also partnered with the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, which is a non-profit group that works to rebuild depleted fish stocks and reduce the environmental impact of fishing and fish farming.

Some examples of what the ALDI commitment to sustainability looks like when it comes to fish and seafood:

• Sourcing only from suppliers that share the commitment to sustainability and transparency.
• Refusing to source from fisheries and/or vessels that have contributed to illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing.
• Aiming to source from wild fisheries that follow best practices, like minimizing impact on the ecosystem and reducing “by-catch” (when fisheries catch other species like dolphins or turtles in their nets and lines).
• Aiming to source from farms that reduce the environmental impact on surrounding plants and animals and promote fish health and welfare.
• Preferably sourcing seafood products that are certified according to the standards set by the Marine Stewardship Council, Best Aquaculture Practices, or the Aquaculture Stewardship Council.
• Using their influence as a large-scale buyer to encourage improvements that promote sustainability.

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You can find more details in their US Seafood Buying Policy.

Remember that you can find a lot of information about the fish or seafood on the package too, including:

• how it was procured (from a wild fishery or a farm)
• the area where it was caught OR the country of origin if it was farmed

Since the American Heart Association recommends eating fish twice a week because it’s such a good source of protein and heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids (especially salmon), I like that ALDI makes that much more affordable to do.

And when you’re ready to prepare your fish and seafood, check out all of the recipes on the ALDI website.