There are situations in which a fishery may have insufficient data to show that it meets the MSC environmental standard for sustainable fishing. To ensure that these fisheries can participate in the MSC program, the MSC has developed methodological guidance to assist certifiers involved in assessing such fisheries.

In May 2007, the MSC Technical Advisory Board approved the draft methodological guidance for use in a number of trial fisheries assessments which will be conducted by third party certifiers. The aim of the trials is to allow for practical testing, review and evaluation of the guidance methodology to ensure its effectiveness.

The new guidance features risk assessment tools for evaluating the impact that fishing activity has on fish stocks and their associated ecosystems. This enables certifiers to determine whether the fishery’s impact is sustainable according to MSC requirements. The new guidance will complement the existing MSC fishery assessment methodology and enable robust assessment of data-deficient fisheries against the MSC environmental standard.

The MSC promotes equal access to its certification program regardless of the scale of fishery operation. All types of fisheries are eligible to participate and be assessed against the MSC environmental standard for sustainable fishing.