Seattle, WA – On the heels of a recent report critical of farmed salmon and as organisations call for improved seafood labelling, consumers are finding the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) eco-label a useful tool in helping them select seafood for their families.  The MSC label is applied to seafood products from certified fisheries – those which have met the MSC’s strict environmental standard for sustainable and well-managed fisheries.  The eco-label not only helps consumers identify certified, wild fish but also provides them with assurance that it can be traced back to the certified fishery.

The MSC programme was created as a conservation tool which would use consumer purchasing power to reward responsibly managed fisheries.  Consumer preference for certified seafood provides an economic reward for well-managed fisheries and becomes an incentive for other fisheries to improve the way they operate.  Wild-catch fisheries come forward voluntarily to be evaluated by independent, third party certifiers.  If a fishery earns certification, its products are eligible to use the MSC eco-label on packaging once they prove the product can be traced back to the fishery and has not been mixed with uncertified seafood.

“Recent food safety issues only highlight the importance of traceability,” commented Howard M. Johnson, president of H.M. Johnson & Associates, an Oregon-based seafood market research firm.  “The traceability of seafood is well established in much of Europe, particularly for MSC certified products.  In the United States, as more seafoods move to market with chain of custody documentation from the MSC, consumers will have greater assurance that the products they purchase are safe and wholesome.”

The Alaska salmon fishery and all five of its salmon species earned MSC certification in September 2000.  Today, it is the only salmon in the world to have earned approval under this internationally-recognised certification programme.  There are more than 100 Alaska salmon products currently carrying the MSC eco-label distinguishing Alaska salmon as a best environmental choice in seafood.  Austin, Texas based Whole Foods Market became the first American retailer to promote its labelled Alaska salmon products in its stores nationwide and Colorado-based Xanterra Parks & Resorts is the first food service operation promoting labelled Alaska salmon on its menus in restaurants in nine national parks.  Other companies labelling their MSC certified, wild Alaska salmon products include SeaBear Smokehouse, Norm Thompson Outfitters, Wildcatch and Vital Choice Seafoods – all have chain of custody or traceability certificates proving their salmon originated from the certified fishery.

“As food issues like contaminants in farmed salmon and Mad Cow make national headlines, the MSC’s Americas office has been flooded with inquiries about the programme from fisheries, seafood suppliers, retailers and food service operators,” said Jim Humphreys, the MSC’s Americas Region Director.  “American consumers are demanding to know where their food comes from and the MSC is the only international seafood label that provides traceability back to the source.”

ENDS