Cod is off, unless it is from the North East Arctic. So is haddock from the Faroes and Dover sole beam-trawled from the Irish Sea. But pollock will do nicely; so will pouting and grey or red gurnard.

The Marine Conservation Society publishes a consumer guide to sustainable seafood today, listing the varieties of fish that can be bought without fear of depleting stocks. It also provides a blacklist of endangered species which, it says, should be expunged from menus and cookbooks. The society also criticises fishmongers, supermarkets and restaurants for failing to label fish adequately to help consumers to make an ethical choice when they shop.

Sam Wilding, the society's fisheries officer, said: “Labelling of seafood sold in the UK is lacking detail, and as such is not fit for purpose. This is leading to confusion among consumers who really want to make the best sustainable seafood choice. It is vital that consumers are given better information to act upon if we are to reduce the tragedy of overfishing.”

The charity hopes people will use its latest guide to choose fish without guilt in the high street, at fish and chip shops and even Michelin-starred restaurants.

Fish species that should be off the menu also include albacore tuna caught by longline and trawling in the North and South Atlantic and Mediterranean and Atlantic cod - although the society accepts that supplies from the North East Arctic, where illegal fishing is a problem, are more acceptable than those from the North Sea, where the population has crashed.

Fishmongers were upset to be told they provide poor labels when they are subject to tough labelling rules enforced by trading standards officers.

John Adams, spokesman for the National Federation of Fishmongers, said: “The law says we must always say where a fish has been caught and I don't know of any prosecutions. In my experience most customers trust their fishmonger and are more interested in price and freshness of the fish.”

The society has received some criticism from an unlikely quarter - scientists at Seafish, the official seafood industry authority. The two organisations often work together.

Philip MacMullan, head of environment at Seafish, said monkfish or anglerfish was listed as a species to shun around Spain and Portugal. But the guide failed to mention that monkfish was in very good condition from around the Channel to the north and northwest of Scotland. He was also confused over guidance on mussels and brown crab. Barrie Deas, chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations, said: “Some of the choices are just bizarre and I think it confuses consumers.”

The society defended its list and said that many of the species mentioned by industry experts were included in an amber list featured in a pocket guide. A list is published online at www.fishonline.org.

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