This paper examines how closely current U.S.federal fisheries management aligns with the concept of “sustainable,” as defined by a third-party group :Monterey Bay Aquarium 's Seafood Watch (SFW) program. The SFW program uses academic,industry,and government data,including federal stock assessments,to develop science-based “Best Choice” (green), “Good Alternative” (yellow),and “Avoid” (red) recommendations for seafood based on a standardized set of sustainability criteria (Table1).