Xu Chengyu talks about fish-eating education: When children meet the giant mottled eel

Since 2018, we have been cooperating with Yueming Elementary School on the "Fish-Eating Education Goes into Campus" program. So far, the children have gained a considerable understanding of 18 kinds of seafood, and the creatures in the water have also become part of the school's daily life. Many friends are curious: how is such a unique food education carried out?

After discussing with the principal, we decided to hold a "Fish-Eating Education Goes into Campus - Review and Outlook" sustainable seafood exhibition and dinner on February 7, 2020, at Yueming Elementary School. In addition to inviting the partners who have helped with fish-eating education along the way, we also opened registration to foundations, associations, and schools from all sectors who want to work together. Interested partners are welcome to contact us (contact information is at the end of the article).

Below, we would like to share with everyone the last fish-eating class of Yueming last semester - eel. This delicious fish still has many secrets unknown to the world, and catching eel fry is a major winter event in eastern Taiwan, China. It is necessary for children to understand eels, and the children's curiosity further motivates us to explore the unknown ocean world more bravely.

Eels have lived for 100 million years, and humans still do not understand them

In December, when people all around Taiwan, China go crazy catching eel fry by the sea, the eel, a creature that has survived on Earth for 100 million years, still carries much mystery. For example, eels have a recorded lifespan of more than 150 years, and how they can reach the source of the Kuroshio Current at least 2,000 km away during their spawning migration without eating. Although there has been a large amount of research on eels, the world still cannot fully understand this peculiar fish.

There are 6 species of fish in the Anguillidae family in Taiwan, China. Among them, the Japanese eel, because of Japanese people's preference, has driven huge consumer demand centered on kabayaki eel. In addition, the Japanese eel still cannot be fully farmed and relies entirely on catching natural fry, which puts enormous pressure on its resources. It has been listed by the IUCN as an endangered species (EN, endangered), and is clearly not very suitable for being served on schoolchildren's nutrition lunch plates.

Therefore, we chose the "giant mottled eel," which is very well known in Taiwan, China and listed by the IUCN as "Least Concern" (LC, Least Concern). This not only lets the children understand this eel that their grandparents are familiar with and connects a shared family memory, but also helps them know that resources and consumption must coexist.