The Marine Stewardship Council launches Ocean Cookbook 2024

by Kyla Van Heerden

Chef Naledi Toona joins the global movement in support of sustainable seafood for healthy oceans – seafood that’s good for you and the ocean too.

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), the ocean not-for-profit responsible for the world’s leading sustainable seafood ecolabel, has launched its well anticipated ‘Ocean Cookbook 2024’. The free, digital cookbook brings together renowned chefs from all over the world to create a collection of delicious, everyday recipes that tell a sustainability story about the seafood we all love.


The cookbook highlights how easy it is to rustle up healthy, affordable, easy-to-make and sustainable seafood dishes at home. The South African edition of the cookbook, dubbed ‘The Whitefish Collection’ and curated by much adored and family-orientated chef, Naledi Toona, showcases 12 family-friendly whitefish recipes. Whitefish, like hake or haddock, is a lean and high-quality protein packed with important vitamins and minerals, including poly-unsaturated fats that are good for one’s heart and brain health. The Heart and Stroke Foundation South Africa recommends enjoying fish at least twice a week as part of a healthy, balanced diet.

Chef Naledi Toona


Included in the choice of recipes is Naledi’s creamy coconut hake with grilled seasonal vegetables. All recipes include a ‘chef’s tip’ with Naledi’s recommendations on how to localise it, substitute with seasonal ingredients, and serving suggestions. “Cooking has always been an act of love for me, and hake is such a versatile, sustainable and quick to cook ingredient. It allows me to show love to my family, today, and to those in the future,” she adds.


Other recipes include a haddock burger, fish lasagna, and hake balls. The cookbook also features stunning food photography from internationally renowned food photographer, David Loftus, and recipes by celebrity chefs including Mitch Tonks of the UK, Dagny Ros of Iceland, and our very own Chef Siba Mtongana’s haddock and broccoli bake from an earlier edition of this annual cookbook.


The ocean is a vital part of human life on our planet. It provides daily protein for over a billion people, it is a reliable source of food for billions more, and 200 million people are employed directly or indirectly by the seafood industry. But our ocean needs help: overfishing, illegal and destructive fishing, and climate change not only negatively impact species and ecosystems, but communities too.


Sustainable fishing and choosing sustainable seafood are part of the solution. The South African hake trawl fishery has been certified to the MSC Fisheries Standard since 2004, and over the last two decades the fishery has seen many environmental, social and economic wins.


The Ocean Cookbook is the centerpiece of the MSC’s communications and marketing campaign for the new year, traditionally a time for healthy and more environmentally conscious eating.


View the free, digital cookbook here: https://www.msc.org/sa-ocean-cookbook-2024

You may also like

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Join our mailing list to receive the latest news and updates from our team.

You have Successfully Subscribed!