26 June, 2025
Publication of updated Fisheries Standard extended by six months
The MSC is announcing an updated package of work related to the MSC Fisheries Standard and associated program documents.
This includes a public consultation on proposed revisions to documents that support the implementation of the Standard, including the recently introduced Evidence Requirements Framework. Additionally, the MSC will undertake new work that may result in targeted revisions to further key areas of the Standard and related documents.
This work responds to concerns raised about Version 3 of the Standard, launched in 2022. While Version 3 includes important improvements, such as stronger requirements on shark finning and the management of lost fishing gear, further testing and stakeholder feedback revealed issues with the practical application of some requirements.
Key areas under consultation include:
- Evidence Requirements Framework: Introduced as a new mandatory method in Version 3, the proposals focus on streamlining the process by which assessors must evaluate evidence and clarifying how to consider the unique circumstance of each fishery under assessment.
- Monitoring thresholds in the Standard: This proposal will ensure thresholds for catch reporting and independent observations (such as electronic monitoring) for high seas fisheries align with global best practice and are practical for different fishery types to apply.
- Shark finning: As a result of changes to the Evidence Requirements Framework, further improvements are proposed to the existing shark finning requirements ensuring that policies are fully implemented and complied with.
The consultation will start on July 10 and close on September 10, 2025.
In addition to this consultation and as part of the new revisions project, the MSC will undertake further work on specific areas of the Fisheries Standard. This includes endangered, threatened and protected and out of scope species, as well as Section SE, which relates to fisheries managed by Regional Fisheries Management Organizations. The new revisions project will also work to simplify and streamline the Fisheries Certification Process.
To allow for the additional work, and to ensure all changes are thoroughly impact tested and aligned with intended sustainability outcomes, the anticipated publication of the updated Fisheries Standard and associated documents has been extended by six months, to early 2027.