Scottish Fisheries Sustainable Accreditation Group (SFSAG) saithe

Last Updated: 8 December 2011
Number of fisheries: 1

Species

Saithe (pollachius virens)

MSC assessment status

The certification body, MacAlister Elliott and Partners Ltd., has proposed 2 peer reviewers for the review of the Draft Scottish Fisheries Sustainable Accreditation Group (SFSAG) saithe fishery Assessment Report.

If you wish to provide feedback on the proposed peer reviewers, please contact Chrissie Sieben no later than 5pm GMT, 30 December 2011

Please refer to the assessment downloads for further details.

Fishery location

North Sea (northern part – Scottish and Norwegian waters) and  west of Scotland in FAO statistical area 27.

Fishing method

Bottom trawl, pair trawl and Scottish seine

Fishery management

Management under the Common Fisheries Policy. ICES is the scientific  authority. Decisions taken by EU Fisheries Council and the Norwegian  government, based on a joint management plan.

Commercial market

North West Europe.

Assessment timeline

The assessment process is expected to take 12 months and is scheduled for completion around June 2012. Please see the download section for a detailed assessment timeline.

The target eligibility date for this fishery is the date of certification.

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

10,085 tonnes in 2010