Editing Seafood (section)

==History==
{{main|History of seafood}}
{{More citations needed section|date=July 2021}}
[[File:Maler der Grabkammer des Menna 009.jpg|thumb|left|Various foods depicted in an Egyptian burial chamber, including fish, {{Circa|1400}} BCE|alt=]]
The harvesting, processing, and consuming of seafoods are ancient practices with archaeological evidence dating back well into the [[Paleolithic]].<ref name=Inman/><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060117013632/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2001/11/1108_bonetool_2.html African Bone Tools Dispute Key Idea About Human Evolution] National Geographic News article.</ref> Findings in a [[sea cave]] at [[Pinnacle Point]] in [[South Africa]] indicate ''[[Homo sapiens]]'' (modern humans) harvested marine life as early as 165,000 years ago,<ref name=Inman>{{cite news|url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/10/071017-cave-coasts.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071018083449/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/10/071017-cave-coasts.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 October 2007|title=African Cave Yields Earliest Proof of Beach Living|last=Inman|first=Mason|publisher=National Geographic News|date=17 October 2007}}</ref> while the [[Neanderthal]]s, an extinct human species contemporary with early ''Homo sapiens'', appear to have been eating seafood at sites along the Mediterranean coast beginning around the same time.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://phys.org/news/2011-09-neanderthals-ate-shellfish-years.html|title=Neanderthals ate shellfish 150,000 years ago: study|publisher=Phys.org|date=15 September 2011}}</ref> Isotopic analysis of the skeletal remains of [[Tianyuan man]], a 40,000-year-old [[anatomically modern human]] from eastern Asia, has shown that he regularly consumed freshwater fish.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Yaowu Hu | first1 = Y | last2 = Hong Shang | first2 = H | last3 = Haowen Tong | first3 = H | last4 = Olaf Nehlich | first4 = O | last5 = Wu Liu | first5 = W | last6 = Zhao | first6 = C | last7 = Yu | first7 = J | last8 = Wang | first8 = C | last9 = Trinkaus | first9 = E | last10 = Richards | first10 = M | date = 2009 | title = Stable isotope dietary analysis of the Tianyuan 1 early modern human | journal = Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | volume = 106 | issue = 27| pages = 10971–10974 | doi=10.1073/pnas.0904826106 | pmid=19581579 | pmc=2706269| bibcode = 2009PNAS..10610971H | doi-access = free }}</ref><ref>[http://www.physorg.com/news166120605.html First direct evidence of substantial fish consumption by early modern humans in China] ''[[PhysOrg.com]]'', 6 July 2009.</ref> [[Archaeological|Archaeology]] features such as [[midden|shell middens]],<ref>[http://www.york.ac.uk/depts/arch/middens/index.htm Coastal Shell Middens and Agricultural Origins in Atlantic Europe].</ref> discarded fish bones, and [[cave painting]]s show that sea foods were important for survival and consumed in significant quantities. During this period, most people lived a [[hunter-gatherer]] lifestyle and were, of necessity, constantly on the move. However, early examples of permanent settlements (though not necessarily permanently occupied), such as those at [[Lepenski Vir]], were almost always associated with fishing as a major source of food.

The ancient [[river]] [[Nile]] was full of fish; fresh and dried fish were a staple food for much of the population.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.icsf.net/jsp/publication/samudra/pdf/english/issue_28/art01.pdf |title= Fisheries history: Gift of the Nile |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061110185510/http://www.icsf.net/jsp/publication/samudra/pdf/english/issue_28/art01.pdf |archive-date= 10 November 2006 |df= dmy-all }}</ref> The [[Egyptians]] had implements and methods for fishing and these are illustrated in [[tomb]] scenes, drawings, and [[papyrus]] documents. Some representations hint at fishing being pursued as a pastime.

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| image1 = Global FAOSTAT group production.png
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| caption1 = World [[fisheries]] harvest, both wild and farmed, in million tonnes, 1950–2010<ref name=FAOSTAT2>Based on data extracted from the FAO [http://faostat.fao.org/site/629/default.aspx FishStat database] 22 July 2012.</ref>
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| caption2 = World [[fisheries]] harvest, wild capture versus aquaculture production, in million tonnes 1950–2010<ref name=FAOSTAT2/>
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Fishing scenes are rarely represented in [[ancient Greek]] culture, a reflection of the low social status of fishing. However, [[Oppian|Oppian of Corycus]], a Greek author wrote a major treatise on sea fishing, the ''Halieulica'' or ''Halieutika'', composed between 177 and 180. This is the earliest such work to have survived to the modern day. The consumption of fish varied by the wealth and location of the household. In the Greek islands and on the coast, fresh fish and seafood ([[Squid as food|squid]], [[Octopus as food|octopus]], and [[shellfish]]) were common. They were eaten locally but more often transported inland. [[Sardines as food|Sardines]] and [[Anchovies as food|anchovies]] were regular fare for the citizens of Athens. They were sometimes sold fresh, but more frequently salted. A [[stele]] of the late 3rd century BCE from the small Boeotian city of [[Akraiphia]], on [[Lake Copais]], provides us with a list of fish prices. The cheapest was ''skaren'' (probably [[parrotfish]]) whereas [[Atlantic bluefin tuna]] was three times as expensive.<ref>Dalby, p.67.</ref> Common salt water fish were [[yellowfin tuna]], [[red mullet]], [[Batoidea|ray]], [[swordfish]], or [[sturgeon]], a delicacy that was eaten salted. Lake Copais itself was famous in all of Greece for its [[Eel as food|eels]], celebrated by the hero of ''[[The Acharnians]]''. Other freshwater fish were [[esox|pike fish]], [[carp]], and the less appreciated [[catfish]].

Pictorial evidence of [[Ancient Rome|Roman]] fishing comes from [[mosaic]]s.<ref>[http://museum.agropolis.fr/english/pages/expos/aliments/poissons/images/mosaique.htm Image of fishing illustrated in a Roman mosaic] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717033618/http://museum.agropolis.fr/english/pages/expos/aliments/poissons/images/mosaique.htm |date=17 July 2011 }}.</ref> At a certain time, the [[goatfish]] was considered the epitome of luxury, above all because its scales exhibit a bright red colour when it dies out of water. For this reason, these fish were occasionally allowed to die slowly at the table. There even was a recipe where this would take place ''in Garo'', in the [[Garum|sauce]]. At the beginning of the Imperial era, however, this custom suddenly came to an end, which is why ''mullus'' in the feast of [[Trimalchio]] (see ''the [[Satyricon]]'') could be shown as a characteristic of the ''[[parvenu]]'', who bores his guests with an unfashionable display of dying fish.

In [[medieval]] times, seafood was less prestigious than other animal meats, and was often seen as merely an alternative to meat on fast days. Still, seafood was the mainstay of many coastal populations. [[Kipper]]s made from herring caught in the [[North Sea]] could be found in markets as far away as [[Constantinople]].<ref>Adamson (2002), p. 11.</ref> While large quantities of fish were eaten fresh, a large proportion was salted, dried, and, to a lesser extent, smoked. [[Stockfish]] - cod that was split down the middle, fixed to a pole, and dried - was very common, though preparation could be time-consuming, and meant beating the dried fish with a mallet before soaking it in water. A wide range of [[Mollusca|mollusk]]s (including [[oyster]]s, [[Mussel#As food|mussel]]s and [[scallop]]s) were eaten by coastal and river-dwelling populations, and freshwater [[Crayfish as food|crayfish]] were seen as a desirable alternative to meat during fish days. Compared to meat, fish was much more expensive for inland populations, especially in Central Europe, and therefore not an option for most.<ref>Adamson (2004), pp. 45–39.</ref>

Modern knowledge of the reproductive cycles of aquatic species has led to the development of [[Fish hatchery|hatcheries]] and improved techniques of [[fish farming]] and [[aquaculture]]. A better understanding of the [[shellfish poisoning|hazards]] of eating raw and undercooked fish and shellfish has led to improved preservation methods and processing.

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