The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is giving the Asian carp a public relations makeover. The name can sound racist and many people can’t stomach eating a dirty, bottom feeding fish. IDNR hopes people swallow the name copi (pronounced KOH-pee).
Assistant Chief of Fisheries Kevin Irons says it’s tasty, healthy, and plentiful in the Illinois River. For another fact to chew on, it’s not a bottom feeder.
IDNR says the fish isn’t leaving, so we should eat it. To give the idea teeth, IDNR is spending $600,000 on marketing to get the fishing industry to catch it and restaurants to serve it.
The department says there’ve been many success stories to give food palatable names. You probably never ate slimehead until it was called orange roughy. Chinese gooseberries became kiwis. And alligator pears are now called avocados.
Copi is short for copious to describe how abundant the fish is in the Illinois River.
Image from a copi marketing video naming some foods that can be made with the fish