Credibility
"The principal ecolabel is the Marine Stewardship Council or MSC, which certifies 7% of the world catch. This is also the oldest label and the only one to really meet FAO standards, according to OFIMER*, for which the MSC stands out for its real scientific approach, independence and transparency.”
December 2008 report from the French Parliamentary Office for the Evaluation of Scientific and Technological Choices
*OFIMER is the French national office for fisheries and aquaculture
The MSC is committed to being the world’s leading certification program for sustainable wild-capture seafood. We seek to deliver a robust, effective and accessible certification program that keeps up with the latest scientific knowledge and industry practices.
How we meet best practice
The MSC program enables consumers and seafood buyers around the world to make the best environmental choice in seafood. Underpinned by best practice guidelines for ecolabelling and certification, we follow international, professional benchmarks to promote robust processes and uphold our values of independence, transparency, impartiality and stakeholder consultation.
Five unique projects
We have also set up five significant projects to uphold our reputation and continually improve our processes and procedures.
Working with developing countries
Half of the world’s globally traded seafood comes from the developing world. The MSC’s Developing World Fisheries Programme ensures that developing countries have fair and equal access to MSC certification and global sustainable seafood markets.
Quality and consistency in assessments
As more fisheries seek MSC certification, this project ensures that every unique fishery is assessed consistently against the MSC environmental standard for sustainable fishing. It captures the experiences of fisheries, scientists, certifiers and stakeholders to maximise quality and consistency in the assessment process.
Access for all fisheries
Many well managed fisheries may not have access to the data and resources needed to present a conclusive scientific case for sustainability. The MSC is piloting 'Guidelines for the Assessment of Small-Scale and Data-Deficient fisheries' - an approach to help certifiers assess such fisheries.
Traceability in the supply chain
The MSC’s ecolabel appears on millions of seafood products around the world, and each product can be traced back to a certified sustainable fishery. Our Traceability and Assurance in the Supply Chain (TASC) project ensures that ‘what you see is what you get’.
Measuring environmental impacts
Seabirds, marine habitats, endangered species and commercial fish stocks are vulnerable to the impacts of fishing. Research from 10 MSC certified fisheries found evidence of environmental benefits before, during and after certification.
