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Marine Stewardship Council
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Marine Stewardship Council | |
 |
|
| Type | Charity |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1997, London, UK |
| Headquarters | 3rd Floor, Mountbarrow House, 6-20 Elizabeth Street, London, UK |
| Industry | Sustainable seafood ecolabel programme |
| Slogan | The best environmental choice in seafood. |
| Website | [1] |
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is an independent non-profit organization that has established a global environmental standard for sustainable and well-managed fisheries. The MSC programme is voluntary and fisheries that are assessed and meet the standard can use the MSC blue ecolabel. The MSC mission is to promote ‘the best environmental choice in seafood’ through this blue ecolabel that is displayed on seafood from a certified fishery. The MSC seeks to harness consumer preference for products from sustainable fisheries by use of its ecolabel. When you buy fish that has the blue MSC ecolabel, it should indicate that this fishery operates in an environmentally responsible way and does not contribute to the global environmental problem of overfishing.
As of December 2006, there are over 450 seafood products available with the MSC ecolabel, sold in 25 countries around the world. 21 fisheries have been independently certified as meeting the MSC’s environmental standard for a sustainable fishery and a further 18 are currently undergoing assessment, (further information on fisheries engaged in the MSC programme).
The MSC was founded in 1997 by the World Wide Fund for Nature and Unilever, and became fully independent in 1999. It has offices in London, UK (head office), Seattle, USA and Sydney, Australia and a liaison office in Tokyo, Japan.
The MSC environmental standard for sustainable fisheries was developed over two years through a consultative process. The three principles of the MSC standard consider:
- The condition of the fish stock(s) of the fishery
- The impact of the fishery on the marine ecosystem
- The fishery management system
The MSC standard is consistent with the ‘Guidelines for the Eco-labelling of Fish and Fishery Products from Marine Wild Capture Fisheries’ adopted by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) in 2005. Any fishery that wishes to become MSC certified and use the ecolabel is assessed against the MSC standard by a third party, independent certification body that has been independently accredited to perform MSC assessments by Accreditation Services International (ASI). Chain of custody certification along the supply chain from boat to point of sale ensures that seafood sold bearing the ecolabel originated from an MSC certified fishery.
The MSC is headed by the Chief Executive who reports to the Board of Trustees. This is supported by the Technical Advisory Board and the Stakeholder Council, (further information on MSC governance). The MSC programme works through a multi-stakeholder partnership approach, taking into account the views of those seeking to secure a sustainable future.
Jared Diamond's Collapse praises MSC and the similar Forest Stewardship Council as good examples of collaboration among environmentalists and businesses for a sustainable economy.
MSC and aquaculture
The Marine Stewardship Council is a programme for wild fisheries and does not include aquaculture production. However, the MSC programme can contribute to sustainable outcomes along the aquaculture production chain through the certification of feed fish fisheries. As of November 2006 there is one fishery undergoing assessment for MSC certification that produces for fishmeal – the Gulf of California sardine fishery. About 85% of the total production from the Gulf of California sardine fishery is used for reduction to fishmeal and mostly used for animal feeds.
Fish & Kidsis a project of the Marine Stewardship Council that encourages schools and restaurants in the England to serve sustainable, MSC labelled seafood. Fish & Kids also aims to raise children’s awareness of sustainable food issues through a classroom resource pack and website using fun games and educational materials.