The Arkhangelsk Trawl Fleet (ATF), one of the biggest fishing industry companies in the Pomorye region1 of Russia has entered its cod (Gadus morhua) and haddock (Melanogrammus aeglefinus) fishery into assessment for MSC certification. The fishery will be assessed against the MSC standard for sustainable and well-managed fisheries. The assessment is estimated to take 12-20 months and will be carried out by the independent certifier Food Certification International (FCI) Ltd.
About the Fishery
ATF is one of the oldest companies in the north of European Russia, established in 1920 and incorporating a coastal structure: cargo area, warehouses, refrigerators and a fish processing plant. The company largely meets the needs of the fish in the Arkhangelsk region, as well as supplying high quality products for export. At the same time, according to ATF , the company’s main task is providing Russian consumers with high quality fish products.
The fishery comprises 5 vessels: “Novoazovsk”, “Konotop”, “Achinsk”, “Vetluga”, “Kholmogory”, fishing year round, using demersal trawls. Fishing takes place inside the Barents and Norwegian seas at ICES Areas Ia,Ib, IIa and IIb; within coastal waters inside the Norwegian and Russian Exclusive Economic Zones, and in international waters. For 2014, the annual quota is set at 30,803 tonnes for cod and 5,296 tonnes for haddock. The main products are frozen-at-sea cod and haddock (headed and gutted) and cod and haddock fillets.
MSC certification is part of the ATF policy
Sergey Nesvetov, Executive director of the ATF said: "The company is currently in the process of active development and modernization. The MSC certification program is part of the general policy of our company, aimed at improving efficiency, traceability and product branding, as well as on the development of technologies that preserve resources and reduce environmental impact ".
The Benefits of the MSC Fishery
Camiel Derichs, MSC Regional Director Europe says: “It is a great development to see the Russian cod and haddock fisheries in Barents Sea entering the MSC assessment. The Russian and Norwegian governments have put mutual efforts into managing cod and haddock stocks in the Barents Sea. Cod and haddock are in great demand in the global whitefish markets, and in Russia as well. I wish ATF success in their assessment and I look forward to the outcome of the process”.
1) The Pomorye region includes the White Sea coast with the surrounding areas