From Wednesday, 29 November 2006, Japanese shoppers will be able to choose from a range of 10 fish products carrying the distinctive blue eco-label of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), marking the start of a commitment to sustainable seafood from leading Japanese retailer, Aeon Co Ltd.
What the MSC says
‘This announcement shows that the Japanese market is shifting rapidly. Aeon’s move to source from fisheries that have been independently certified as sustainable and well managed is a clear signal that Japanese consumers are ready to look for the best environmental choice in seafood,’ said Duncan Leadbitter, Director of the MSC’s Asia-Pacific Office.
What Aeon says
Aeon 's Director of Marine Products Division, Kazuhiko Nanya, commented: ‘For our customers, a commitment to sustainability engenders confidence that fish will continue to be on the dinner table in years to come. That's why we decided to introduce MSC products. We are viewing this in terms of global environmental conservation, and so we will be seeking cooperation from our clients as we push for more MSC products in more premises, at the same time as we expand our private-brand MSC merchandise.’
The 10 products will be available in 660 Jusco, MaxValu and other stores in Japan under the TOPVALU Green Eye private brand and include salted salmon fillets, salmon roe, pollock roe, cod roe and hoki. Consumers can easily spot the products by looking for the MSC’s blue eco-label on packaging.
The products come from four fisheries that meet the MSC's strict environmental standard - New Zealand hoki, Alaska salmon, Alaska pollock and Pacific cod freezer longline fisheries. All of the fisheries have been certified as sustainable and well managed following an assessment under the MSC’s independent certification programme, which is the only fishery certification programme in the world to meet the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation guidelines for the certification and eco-labelling of fisheries.
What WWF says
‘Aeon's actions show that retailers can take positive, concrete steps to promote the recovery of marine fisheries and strengthen conservation efforts for marine ecosystems,’ said Dr. Simon Cripps, Director of WWF's Global Marine Programme. ‘Aeon's commitment shows that forward-thinking retailers have a strong interest in ensuring that their customers are supplied with environmentally certified products and therefore have the option to choose sustainable seafood.’
The Aeon announcement comes less than a year after the first Japanese fishery (Kyoto Danish seine flathead flounder and snowcrab) announced it was seeking full MSC assessment, and a few months after the first MSC-labelled products were introduced into Tokyo supermarkets.