Gidney Fisheries preserves their MSC Chain of Custody Certification: Essential for Retail Markets
December 2020
Digby, Nova Scotia – The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has become the most prominent certification and eco- labelling program for wild capture fisheries. To date, it has 409 fisheries certified against its standard with MSC-engaged catch reaching 14.7 million tonnes in 2019/2020.
The MSC aims to use its ecolabel program to contribute to the health of the world’s oceans. They do this by recognising and rewarding sustainable fishing practices, influencing the choices people make when buying seafood, and working with MSC partners to transform the seafood market to a sustainable basis.
In order to achieve these aims the MSC has developed two standards:
(1) the Environmental Standard for Sustainable Fishing, and
(2) the Chain of Custody Standard for Seafood Traceability.
The MSC Chain of Custody Standard certifies businesses such as processors, exporters, and retailers who are audited to show they have effective traceability, storage, and record-keeping systems. This certification is valid for 2 years after which the business must be reassessed.
Initially achieving its MSC Chain of Custody certification in June 2017, Gidney Fisheries is proud to announce has preserved its certified status with their recent audit for compliance.
But, is the MSC label really that important?
For seafood processors and retailers is absolutely is.
An MSC consumer survey, carried out by GlobeScan, is the biggest survey of seafood consumers globally. It includes more than 26,000 seafood consumers across 23 countries.
This survey found 76% of participants agreed that “Supermarkets/grocery stores should take all unsustainable fish and seafood products off their shelves.”
This consumer opinion is reflected in the MSC annual report which identified that retail sales of MSC-labelled products have surpassed $10 billion for the first time ever.
“This is exciting news for us as we enter the retail market with our new retail-ready packaging for our HPP raw lobster,” says CEO, Barry C. Gidney.
For more information on Gidney’s HPP half split lobster retail packaging, contact Director of Sales, John Martin.
