Exmouth mussels
Last Updated: 24 May 2012
Number of fisheries: 1
Species
Mussel / common mussel/ blue mussel / European mussel
MSC assessment status
The Conformity Assessment Body, MacAlister Elliott & Partners Ltd., has announced that the Public Comment Draft Report for the Exmouth mussels fishery is now available for comment for a period of 30 days. Any stakeholder wishing to comment on the report is invited to contact Chrissie Sieben or Jo Gascoigne no later than 5pm GMT, 25 June 2012.
Stakeholders are advised that they are to provide objective evidence in support of any additional claims or any claimed errors of fact in their response to the Public Comment Draft Report. Any comments made by stakeholders shall be documented and forwarded by the certification body to its certification decision-making entity.
Please see assessment downloads for further information.
Fishery location
NW English channel, Exmouth, FAO area: NE Atlantic (Area 27)
Fishing method
Seed mussels collected by hovering elevator fed by water jets
Culture and harvesting of adult mussels by hovering elevator fed by water jets
Fishery management
Private seabed area is leased from Lord Devon. Oversight of fishery and mussel population by Devon and Severn IFCA. Natural England may intervene in activity to protect ‘good ecological status’ of Exe Estuary SPA and SSSI. Part of areas is also local nature reserve.
Commercial market
UK, France, Netherlands
Assessment timeline
The assessment process is expected to take 7 months and is scheduled for completion around 07/2012. Please see the download section for a detailed assessment timeline.
The target eligibility date for this fishery is the 15/07/2012.
The MSC ecolabel can only be applied to product from certified fisheries. The MSC program does allow, in certain circumstances and within strict traceability requirements, the MSC ecolabel to be applied following certification to product caught before the actual date of certification. The target eligibility date therefore represents the date from which products may become eligible to carry the MSC ecolabel, however they cannot be sold until and if the fishery is certified. The actual eligibility date will be determined if the fishery is certified to the MSC standard.
To find out more about when fish from this fishery may be sold with the MSC ecolabel, please follow this link (http://www.msc.org/get-certified/supply-chain/eligibility-dates).
Tonnage of the fishery
Seed collected - 800 tons between Feb-June 2011
Mussel sales - 207 tons in 2011
