Michelin-Starred Restaurant Disrupted and Arrest Made
- On 17/11/22 at around 20:45, Emma Smart peacefully attempted to discuss the need for massive climate action with Sir David Attenborough as he dined at ‘Catch at the Old Fish Market, Weymouth [1].
- Smart can be seen being forcibly removed by police and staff, before being handcuffed by police.
- The action came as Animal Rebellion continues to call for a plant-based food system and mass-rewilding programme.
A high-end seafood restaurant charging £65 per person (minimum) was targeted last night as a local marine biologist attempted to talk to Sir David about climate breakdown and how he could use his position to call for changes to our food system amidst COP27.
Emma Smart, who has previously taken action with Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain, said:
“The Catch is a symbol of excess and inequality in today’s world, Weymouth has average wages amongst the lowest in The UK and is at huge risk of sea level rises. Yet this restaurant still continues business as usual amongst the worst cost-of-living crisis many will ever experience.
We don’t need another documentary series showing us that we are losing, some 150 species going extinct globally every single day. What we need is action. Sir David is in a unique position to tell the truth about the biodiversity crisis. He has the chance to leave a legacy of love, care, and of being the forerunner of a better world.” [2]
Since 2006, studies have suggested we could see fishless oceans by 2048. Animal Rebellion claims that the only way to conclusively address this is by supporting farmers and fishing communities in the transition to a just and sustainable plant-based food system [4]. One of those species is Sea Bass, which is on the menu at The Catch. The Marine Conservation Society Good Fish Guide states the stocks of seabass in the English Channel are at a very low size [3]. There are no total allowable catch limits or quotas for wild sea bass and catches by both commercial and recreational fishers are not well documented.
Andy Smart, Emma’s husband, said:
“Most of Weymouth will be uninsurable in the coming years due to flood risk. Ordinary people here can’t just uproot their entire lives, yet businesses like The Catch are continuing to profit from the destruction of our oceans and simply driving the divide between the 1% and the 99%.
The cost-of-living and climate crises are woven together, and a key solution to both is the same. We need huge political change to support farmers and fishing communities in the transition to a plant-based food system. This would produce an abundance of healthy, cheap, reliable food whilst also drawing down massive amounts of carbon.”
The action comes as part of Animal Rebellion’s demands for a plant-based future, which were announced on Monday 23rd of May [5]. The animal and climate group is urging wholesale governmental and societal support for farmers and fishing communities to transition to a plant-based food system and programme of rewilding that will secure a future for generations to come.
Animal Rebellion is a mass movement using nonviolent civil disobedience to call for a just, sustainable plant-based food system.
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