Saving Seafood

Feds Look to Improve Cod Catch Data With Electronic Monitors

June 25, 2017 — Federal fishing regulators are working on new rules to try to get better information about the catch of cod and other valuable fish species in the Northeast.

The New England Fishery Management Council has approved a range of possible alternatives that could be developed to improve monitoring of groundfish. Groundfish include several important commercial species such as cod, haddock and sole.

The council says it wants to improve reliability and accountability of catch reporting. Catch data are important because they help prevent overfishing of species.

One alternative the council is considering is electronic monitoring. The council says electronic monitoring could be used as an alternative to human at-sea monitors who collect fishing data aboard ships.

Read the full story at NECN

Two rockfish species make a comeback as conservation limits pay off

June 24, 2017 — For fishermen and seafood lovers, there is good news about two species of rockfish.

Stocks of bocaccio and the darkblotched rockfish have been rebuilt after years of conservation restrictions to protect populations knocked down by a combination of poor ocean conditions and overfishing.

The actions included major closures of some fishing areas and reductions in the numbers of these fish that could be caught — even accidentally — by commercial fleets. Recreational fishermen also faced reductions in harvests.

Such protections helped to protect the stocks until years when survival rates of young fish improve dramatically for reasons that scientists are still trying to understand.

“By working together, we’ve brought bocaccio and darkblotched rockfish back to where they will again be part of a sustainable West Coast groundfish fishery” said Barry Thom, regional administrator of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries West Coast Region, in a statement.

The bocaccio, a rockfish that can grow up to 3 feet in length and live for a half century, was declared to be overfished in the 200-mile federally managed zone back in 1999. The smaller darkblotched rockfish, which can live for more than a century, got the designation in 2000.

Scientists say there is still a lot to learn, including what changes in ocean conditions contributed to the resurgent populations.

“We wish we knew, and that’s one of the questions that has yet to be very well answered for most of our groundfish species,” said Jim Hastie, a Seattle-based NOAA Fisheries official involved with assessing fish stocks.

Read the full story at The Seattle Times

Following the Fish: Where New England’s Catch Goes and Why It Matters

June 20, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA:

Ever wonder where the fish landed at the dock ends up, and what it is used for? For some species the trip is short and direct and for one purpose, while other species travel thousands of miles to their final destination and have multiple uses. Besides food for humans, seafood could be used as bait for other fisheries, in pet food, as fertilizer, or in nutraceuticals – products derived from a food source that claim to have a health benefit.

As the public becomes more interested in where the food they eat comes from, NEFSC’s social scientists have followed the fishery supply chain from harvest to its final destination. They looked at where fish and other seafood are caught, where they go after they are landed, how they get there, and what they are used for. Following the fish means following a route that can be local, regional, national or international, depending on the species. It leads to a better understanding of the sustainability of regional fisheries and their social, economic and cultural relationships.

“Many fish species caught in New England are primarily used for food,” said Patricia Pinto da Silva, a social policy specialist in the Center’s Social Sciences Branch and one of the study authors. “Some are processed and distributed nationally and internationally, such as scallops, while others are sold in parts or whole in more limited markets, such as monkfish. Groundfish is one of the few fisheries that is primarily consumed regionally.”

Pinto da Silva and colleagues looked at species in the New England Fishery Management Council’s fishery management plans. They examined self-reported fisheries data and data collected by at-sea observers as well as data from dealers. They also spoke with fishermen, seafood dealers, staff at processing plants and others with knowledge of different aspects of the fishery, including harvest, processing and distribution.

Current and historical Information about each fishery, the gear types used, its supply chain, emerging markets, and how the information was gathered and from whom were included in a summary of each fishery along with a map of its supply chain. The only exception was American lobster, due to a lack of the kind of data that were available for the other fisheries.

“This study is a first step in characterizing New England fisheries, including where fish are caught, what they are used for, and where they go once they are landed,” Pinto da Silva said. “We did not include aquaculture or the regional recreational harvest, which is something we would like to do in the future.”

Fish caught in New England vary widely in where they are sold and how they are used. Monkfish, for example, is primarily sold as a food fish, and largely destined for an international market. Vessels supply a small domestic market through restaurants, wholesalers and small retail fish markets, but most monkfish is exported to Europe and Asia by container ship and airplane, with parts of the fish sold for different uses in different countries.

Atlantic herring, once a canned food product supporting a regional canning industry that has since disappeared, is now primarily used as bait for the regional lobster fishery. Some herring is also used as bait in the tuna or longlining fisheries, and a few herring are pickled or smoked for specialty products or sold as pet food.

One of the highest valued fisheries in the nation, Atlantic sea scallops are sold as food in domestic and international markets. Most are shucked at sea and generally only the adductor muscle is harvested and sold.  Only a small percentage of landings remain in the region, where local dealers sell directly to the public and to small regional retailers and restaurants. More often, large scallop processors sell directly to large industrial food companies that sell to grocery stores and restaurants nationwide. Flash-frozen scallops are sold to domestic and European export markets.

Many of New England’s groundfish, including cod, haddock, pollock and several flounders, are used as food fish, sold to local restaurants and fish markets and to domestic grocery stores. Depending on the species, groundfish that stays local travels from the boat to a dealer to fish markets, local restaurants and community supported fisheries.

Most of the groundfish caught in the Northeast stays in the Northeast, but it is also trucked to large seafood markets on the East Coast or shipped by air to the Midwest and other distant markets. Processors export some groundfish species to Europe, Canada and Japan for use there or to be processed and re-imported to the U.S. Use varies by species, but includes processing as fillets, for fish and chips, salted or smoked, or used for bait, in pet food, fertilizer or in nutraceuticals.

While many fish species are landed in the Northeast, the high demand for fish means much of it is imported from other countries, or caught in the U.S., exported to another country for processing, then imported back into the U.S. for sale.

“More than 90 percent of the fish consumed in the U.S. is imported, much of it farm-raised or aquacultured salmon and shrimp, and canned tuna,” Pinto da Silva said.  “In some ways we know more about tracing our imports than we do about the fish caught in our own federal waters. This study was an attempt to describe the broader food system in the region beyond harvesting so we are more aware of all the connections between fishing, markets, and communities and can begin to address the socially-valued outcomes from fisheries management.”

In addition to Pinto da Silva, other authors of the study were Julia Olson, Sharon Benjamin, Ariele Baker and Meri Ratzel from the NEFSC’s Social Sciences Branch.

Read the full release here

NOAA Fisheries Seeks Comments on Proposed Framework 56 to the Northeast Multispecies Fishery Management Plan

June 22, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA:

We are seeking public comment on an action that would set catch limits for four groundfish stocks the 2017 fishing year (May 1, 2017-April 30, 2018), as follows:

  • Georges Bank cod would quota would decrease by 13%
  • Georges Bank haddock quota would increase by 2%
  • Georges Bank yellowtail flounder would decrease by 23%
  • Witch flounder quota would increase by 91%

We set catch limits for the 2017 fishing year for the remaining 16 groundfish stocks in Framework 55. The 2017 catch limits for these 16 stocks remain the same as or similar to 2016 limits. 

This action will set sector allocations and common pool trip limits based on the 2017 limits and finalized 2017 sector rosters.

Framework 56 would also:

  • Create an allocation of northern windowpane flounder for the scallop fishery;
  • Revise the trigger for implementing the scallop fishery’s accountability measures for both its GB yellowtail flounder and northern windowpane flounder allocation; and
  • Increase the GB haddock allocation for the midwater trawl fishery.

Finally, this action describes the accountability measures for the 2017 fishing year for the northern and southern windowpane flounder.

Read the proposed rule as published in the Federal Register, and the supplemental documents on our website. 

Please submit your comments through the online portal by July 7, 2017.

You may also submit comments through regular mail to: 

John Bullard, Regional Administrator

Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office

55 Great Republic Drive

Gloucester, MA 01930

Questions? Contact Jennifer Goebel at 978-281-9175 or jennifer.goebel@noaa.gov

MASSACHUSETTS: Mitchell sends NOAA letter requesting Rafael permits stay in New Bedford

June 21, 2017 — Mayor Jon Mitchell penned a letter to NOAA regarding Carlos Rafael’s permits, a day after Maine’s congressional delegation signed a letter regarding the permits.

In an argument consisting of four pages, Mitchell provided legal precedent for the Department of Justice and NOAA to punish Rafael, while also keeping the 13 fishing permits in question in New Bedford. He likens Rafael’s case to those cases involving wrongdoing by the head of a large business. He states, “It is common for the government to tailor punishment so as to avoid harm to others who were not involved.”

Rafael’s business employ 285 fishermen.

Mitchell suggested Rafael sell his entire business to other New Bedford companies, forfeiting the proceeds to the government. It would entirely exclude Rafael from fishing despite possessing more permits than the 13 in question.

“If the Service affords him a reasonable opportunity to fully divest himself in such fashion,” Mitchel wrote. “The government can accomplish its enforcement goals and avoid harm to employees and other businesses.”

On Monday, U.S. Senators Angus King and Susan Collins, along with members of Congress Chellie Pingree and Bruce Poliquin, drafted a letter to U.S. Secretary Wilbur Ross stating the permits should be redistributed among “all eligible permit holders in the fleet.” The Congressional delegation cited the Magnuson-Stevens Act to justify its belief.

Politicians and organizations have jockeyed for leverage regarding the final destination of the permits almost immediately after Rafael pleaded guilty to 28 counts including falsifying fishing quotas, false labeling, conspiracy and tax evasion at the end of March.

Read the full story at the New Bedford Standard-Times

NEFMC Selects Groundfish Monitoring Alternatives, Initiates FW 57

June 21, 2017 — The following was released by the New England Fishery Management Council:

Following a review of written and oral public comments collected during the Feb. 17-April 3 scoping process, the New England Fishery Management Council today approved an extensive range of alternatives for development and further consideration in Groundfish Monitoring Amendment 23.

The Council identified the amendment’s purpose and need and then voted to include the following elements to achieve the purpose:

  • Electronic monitoring (EM) alternatives;
  • A dockside monitoring program option;
  • Alternatives to determine the total monitoring coverage rate, including reevaluating the 30% coefficient of variation (CV) precision standard and how it is applied, for example, on a fishery vs. stock level;
  • An option to facilitate knowing the total coverage rate at a time certain to assist sectors for business planning; and
  • Proposals to streamline and improve the sector weekly reporting process.

Regarding electronic monitoring, the Council voted to include the following items for further development and analysis within the range of alternatives:

  • EM as an approved alternative to at-sea monitors to directly estimate discards;
  • An audit-based approach where EM operates on 100% of the trips with a subset of hauls or trips reviewed to verify vessel trip reported discards; and
  • A maximized retention approach where EM verifies that all groundfish are landed and dockside monitoring is used to sample catch.

Read the full release here

TWO IMPORTANT WEST COAST GROUNDFISH STOCKS REBUILT

June 20, 2017 — The following was released by the Pacific Fishery Management Council:

Two important West Coast groundfish stocks that were formerly overfished have now been rebuilt.

Bocaccio and darkblotched rockfish, which are managed by the Pacific Fishery Management Council, were under strict rebuilding plans that have constrained West Coast fisheries for more than a decade. Bocaccio was declared overfished in 1999, and darkblotched rockfish in 2000; both were rebuilt well before their original target dates.

The Pacific Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional fishery management councils that manage ocean fisheries in the United States. Altogether, the Pacific Council manages more than 100 species of groundfish.

Managing groundfish fisheries under rebuilding plans has been an immense challenge for the Council and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries). These plans required sharp reductions in commercial and recreational fisheries targeting groundfish, which included widespread fishing closures through the establishment of Rockfish Conservation Areas off the West Coast and other measures. Since 2003, managing overfished species through area closures such as the Rockfish Conservation Areas has helped to reduce fishing impacts and rebuild overfished groundfish species.

In addition, the groundfish fleet has had to limit fishing for other more abundant species to avoid unintentional catch of the overfished stocks.

“The rebuilding strategies used to achieve this conservation success, coupled with favorable environmental conditions for groundfish productivity, have paid huge dividends in rebuilding our overfished groundfish stocks and resurrecting West Coast groundfish fisheries,” said Council Chair Herb Pollard.

The successful rebuilding of these species reflects the support and sacrifice of West Coast ports and fishermen who recognized the difficult actions and fishing cutbacks necessary to restore the stocks. The rebuilding of bocaccio and darkblotched rockfish will lead to increased harvest opportunities beginning in 2019.

“By working together, we’ve brought bocaccio and darkblotched rockfish back to where they will again be part of a sustainable West Coast groundfish fishery that creates renewed opportunity for the fishing fleet, as well as more options for seafood consumers,” said Barry Thom, Regional Administrator of NOAA Fisheries West Coast Region.

Between 1999 and 2017, ten West Coast groundfish stocks were declared overfished, as surveys documented their declining numbers. Pacific whiting, for example, was declared overfished in 2002. The Council, working with NOAA Fisheries and the fishing industry, reduced commercial harvests. Combined with strong reproduction and recruitment, the fishing cutbacks led to the rapid rebuilding of Pacific whiting by 2004. The Council and NOAA Fisheries developed rebuilding plans for the other nine overfished stocks—bocaccio, darkblotched rockfish, lingcod, canary rockfish, cowcod, Pacific ocean perch, widow rockfish, petrale sole, and yelloweye rockfish.

Lingcod was declared rebuilt in 2005, and widow rockfish in 2012. Both petrale sole and canary rockfish were declared rebuilt in 2015. Rebuilding plans remain in place for three remaining overfished species: cowcod, Pacific ocean perch, and yelloweye rockfish. New assessments for Pacific ocean perch and yelloweye rockfish will be reviewed this summer and may be adopted in September. Cowcod is expected to be rebuilt by 2019.

“The Council is a transparent, science-based, inclusive approach to fisheries management,” said Council Executive Director Chuck Tracy. “Our progress in rebuilding overfished stocks shows the effectiveness of this approach. West Coast fisheries are a model of sustainable resource management, and they will continue to provide healthy seafood, jobs, and support for coastal communities, as well as access to this resource for all Americans.”

Process

The bocaccio and darkblotched rockfish assessments were developed by scientists at NOAA Fisheries and were reviewed by the Council’s scientific advisory bodies.  NOAA Fisheries confirmed the stocks’ status as rebuilt on June 16.

Council Role  

The Pacific Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional fishery management councils established by the Magnuson Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976 for the purpose of managing fisheries 3‐200 nautical miles offshore of the United States of America coastline.  The Pacific Council recommends management measures for fisheries off the coasts of California, Oregon, and Washington.

JOHN BULLARD: There Is No Silver Bullet for Groundfish

June 16, 2017 — The great philosopher Yogi Berra said, “You can observe a lot by watching.” You can also learn a lot by listening. I try to do a lot of listening. I think it’s the most important part of my job, and of all of our jobs at the Greater Atlantic Regional Fisheries Office and the Northeast Fisheries Science Center.

With all of the activity in the last couple of months, there has certainly been a LOT to listen to. For example, we held recreational roundtable meetings in New Jersey and New Hampshire and a commercial roundtable in New Bedford. We also attended the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Council meetings and an Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission meeting. And let’s not forget the daily meetings, emails, and phone calls with stakeholders.

What did we hear? We heard about recreational catch estimates and allocations among different fishing sectors. We heard reports on the Standardized Bycatch Reduction Methodology and observer coverage for last year and next. We heard progress reports on electronic monitoring projects. And, in every hallway, there has been talk of the Carlos Rafael case and its potential impact on the groundfish industry.

While obviously I can’t comment on the specifics of an ongoing case, I am going to comment on a larger issue that I think is important. To put it briefly: There’s no such thing as a silver bullet.

When people come up to me passionately lamenting that Amendment 18 will not do enough to address consolidation within the groundfish fleet, I understand their passion. The power of a very large fleet can be misused. But, I wonder if they are looking to Amendment 18 to be a silver bullet that will singlehandedly solve this problem.

Some blame sector management for our troubles. I don’t buy it. Instead, I see the ability of the private sector to manage quota with accountability, flexibility, and initiative. All of these are necessary ingredients for a healthy fishing industry, especially in tough times.

At many meetings, people line up to decry the science and management. And yet, some of the same people who condemn the status quo are the ones who advocate for no action. It causes me to wonder whether or not we share the same sense of urgency towards improving the accuracy of our data, which is needed to gain more confidence in our scientific models, which is needed to improve our management. The status quo is short-sighted and leaves us with few options.

I see a system under a lot of stress. When there is a lot of stress, there is a tendency to blame:  Blame the science. Blame woeful observer coverage levels. Blame errors in reporting or illegal discarding. Blame the management. Blame fleet consolidation or the sector system. Blame overfishing over the years. Blame warming ocean waters. Blame NOAA Fisheries. Blame the Councils. Point the finger somewhere.

Just as there is the tendency to blame, there is also the quest for the silver bullet. While understanding causes is essential to providing solutions, an emphasis on blame can be distracting and destructive, especially if the fingers never point in the mirror. The solution is likely to be a network of responses rather than a single answer. A network that will provide accuracy, accountability, and efficiency.

I think that network of answers has several fundamental elements:

  • A renewed management focus on optimum yield and business flexibility that follows on the heels of improved monitoring and complete accountability, and that provides diversity and stability to the groundfish fleet.
  • A revamped Office of Law Enforcement that will continue to help fishermen comply with the rules and root out the few bad apples. Nearly every single fisherman works hard to comply with complicated regulations to bring quality seafood to the consumer. So when the occasional violator decides the rules don’t apply to him, that person is stealing from his neighbors and emboldening others to cheat, and needs to be brought to justice. Our Law Enforcement team is doing just this with increasing efficiency.
  • An improved monitoring program that will provide full accountability and full coverage. The program will tap into emerging technologies with increased use of electronic monitoring coverage by either the “trust but verify model” or “maximized retention/ dockside sampling model.” The resulting increase in accuracy and shared sense of responsibility for effective monitoring and management of this fishery may allow uncertainty buffers to be reduced, which could then allow us to increase quotas.
  • Improved and integrated science that includes fishermen and their insights into the design, implementation, and interpretation of science, a wider understanding of ecosystem changes, and better communication and coordination with stakeholders, all of which ultimately leads to wider acceptance of results. The best science is transparent, timely, adaptable to our rapidly changing environment, and allows us to make better management decisions.

There is no silver bullet. Each of these elements is equally important in transforming the groundfish fishery into a one that provides a stable source of protein for U.S. consumers, and a stable source of jobs for New England fishermen.

New England groundfish is certainly not the only fishery with high profile enforcement cases or challenging scientific questions. But these issues are most acute in groundfish—one of the most iconic and complex fisheries in the world. The fishery has been dealt a series of devastating blows, and the cumulative effects have finally caught up to us.

Yogi Berra also said, “When you come to the fork in the road, take it.” Well we’re at a fork in the road in groundfish management. The status quo has gotten us record low abundance in some stocks, arguments about the science, pressures to discard legal fish that have proven as irresistible to avoid as they are to acknowledge, and all of us skirting the truth in many ways at a cost to the fishery and future generations. Seeking accuracy should not be something that anyone gets penalized for. Rather, we must remove the disincentives for full accountability and full coverage. We have to bring illegal discarding out of the shadows. Talk about it. Acknowledge it. Account for it.

If anyone thinks that the status quo is good enough, then they haven’t been paying attention.

Read the full statement here

NOAA Fisheries Announces Reimbursement Rate of 60 Percent for 2017 At-Sea Monitoring Costs in Groundfish Fishery

June 16, 2017 — The following was released by NOAA:

Effective at-sea monitoring (ASM) programs are essential to the success and sustainability of Greater Atlantic Region fisheries. Groundfish vessels in the Greater Atlantic Region that participate in the sector program are required to carry a fisheries observer or an at-sea monitor for a portion of their trips. Fisheries observers are provided and typically paid for by the Federal government in the Standardized Bycatch Reporting Methodology (SBRM) program and at-sea monitors are partially paid for by industry in the at-sea monitoring program.

In 2016, industry began paying their portion of at-sea monitoring costs and NOAA Fisheries was able to reimburse 85 percent of industry’s expenses for July 2016-April 2017. We used these funds to offset a portion of industry’s costs of the groundfish ASM program through a grant administered by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC). For fishing year 2017, there are remaining funds in the grant, and therefore we will continue the reimbursement program.

We estimate there is funding to reimburse 60 percent of ASM costs for the 2017 fishing year. 

Any sector trip beginning on or after May 1 is now eligible for reimbursement. 

We are committed to providing as much stability to sectors as possible, so we have based our reimbursement rate on one that we anticipate will be consistent through the entire fishing year.

More information about our region’s observer program.

U.S. West Coast Fisheries Revitalized by Catch-Share System

June 16, 2017 — The following was released by the Marine Stewardship Council:

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has published its new, comprehensive analysis of the impact of sustainable seafood certification in safeguarding our marine resources. The MSC Global Impacts Report 2017 spotlights the U.S. West Coast groundfish trawl among more than a thousand examples of positive change made by certified fisheries to safeguard fish stocks and marine habitats.

The turnaround of the U.S. West Coast groundfish trawl, which received a disaster declaration by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce in 2000, is a true American success story. Between the 1980s and 2000s, landings dropped by 70 percent. Fishing communities suffered as revenues fell from US$47.3 million in 1997 to US$22.2 million in 2007. In 2011, under the advice of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Pacific Fishery Management Council took the then-controversial decision to introduce an individual fishery quota system.

The system has been described by NOAA as the biggest transformation in fish management for more than a generation. Since its introduction, fishers have made fewer trips each week, landed more of the fish that they catch, and earned higher revenue for each fishing trip. Importantly, bycatch and discards have dropped substantially with catch of rebuilding stocks 50 percent lower than before the catch-share system was introduced. For example, the discard rate of darkblotched rockfish dropped from 51 percent to just 2 percent and for bocaccio rockfish it fell from 80 percent to less than 1 percent.

In 2014, MSC certification provided valuable recognition of this transformation and ushered in further improvements. Since becoming certified, the fishery client has continued to work closely with NOAA and has fostered strong collaborations with international non-profit organizations.

Representing the U.S. West Coast groundfish trawl fisheries, Brad Pettinger, Director of the Oregon Trawl Commission, said: “In gaining MSC certification for this fishery, what we really did was to renew the social contract that we have with the public, providing assurance that we are fishing sustainably and in a manner that is consistent with the public’s high expectation.”

The MSC report provides governments, industry and NGOs with evidence for credible certification as a powerful tool to catalyze and secure improvements in marine fisheries. The findings were released just ahead of the United Nations (UN) Oceans Conference, which convened in New York last week to support the implementation of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14, which calls to conserve and sustainably use the oceans.

“When people purchase MSC certified seafood, their choice supports fishermen around the world who are working hard to meet the world’s most rigorous standard for environmental sustainability,” said Brian Perkins, MSC regional director – Americas. “We’re extremely proud of the MSC certified U.S. West Coast groundfish trawl fishery and fisheries around the globe working to safeguard seafood supplies for the future.”

With certified fisheries currently comprising 12% of global marine catch, the MSC’s goal is for 20% of all wild caught seafood to come from fisheries engaged in the MSC program by 2020. The report clearly demonstrates that with the correct incentives and actions fisheries can achieve the sustainable performance required to meet the SDGs.

A catalyst for change in habitats and ecosystems management

The MSC report shows that 94% of fisheries entering the program have made at least one improvement to achieve or maintain certification, totaling more than 1,200 over the last 16 years. Of these, 117 actions by 39 fisheries contributed to improving habitat status, management and information. In total, MSC certified fisheries have been involved with 46 new scientific research projects as part of efforts to better understand and minimize impacts on habitats.

Our oceans, our future – more to do

Roughly half of fisheries which complete voluntary pre-assessment to the MSC Fisheries Standard do not progress to full assessment, suggesting that they have work to do to reach the requirements of certification.

The MSC Global Impacts Report maps the location of certified fisheries in large marine ecosystems (LMEs) around the world, showing the proportion of MSC certified fisheries in areas of international importance to biodiversity. The maps reveal a need to support small-scale fisheries, particularly those in developing countries, on the road to sustainability. The MSC is developing new tools and investing in scientific research to support fisheries in achieving MSC certification.

In order for these initiatives to have impact at scale, the MSC encourages the international community meeting at the UN to support market-based incentive mechanisms, including certification, as an essential tool to contribute to realizing the SDGs. Consumers can also play their part by choosing seafood with the blue MSC label.

Read the MSC’s commitment to SDG 14

The MSC program is recognized in the UN Concept Paper for Partnership dialogue as a promising tool for developing partnerships and sustainable seafood supply chains.