The British-based restaurant chain fish! has become the first in the world to offer Marine Stewardship Council-labelled fish on its menus after agreeing to sell MSC Alaskan salmon in its 10 outlets. The move fits in with the group’s environmental approach to product sourcing.
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The MSC, established in 1997 by Unilever and the World Wildlife Fund and independent since 1999, is a global non-profit organisation which works to maintain fish sustainability and ensure the quality of the marine eco-system which they inhabit. The group encourages fisheries to receive MSC certification, which carries with it a message which can be passed on to consumers.
Five fisheries – Australian Rock Lobster, Thames Blackwater Herring, Alaskan Salmon, New Zealand Hoki and Burry Inlet Cockles – currently carry MSC certification, with a further 30 at different stages of the certification process. Certification is judged on the condition of the fish stock, the impact of the fishery on the marine eco-system and the fishery management systems.
Speaking at the announcement of the fish! commitment, MSC chief executive Brendan May said that the initiative would help to increase consumer awareness “in the same way the organic movement took off through restaurants.” Speaking to just-food.com afterwards, he said that while organic food concentrated on worries over health issues, the MSC was purely concerned with sustainability.
Nevertheless, it is possible that consumers could be confused by the number of different types of certification which exist and may not understand the differences. While conceding that there could be confusion, Mr May said: “We are the only global seafood label, so there shouldn’t be a problem.”
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By GlobalDataMSC labelling is increasing in retail outlets as well. The recent growth of organic labelling means that it is vital for the group to establish what their label means, otherwise consumers may not be aware of the differences, and the message they are trying to communicate may not come across properly.
