March 16, 2022 — The Aquaculture Stewardship Council is launching its largest public-facing marketing campaign ever as the organization seeks to tell the story of sustainable aquaculture to consumers.
The new marketing campaign will have a heavy U.S. emphasis, with an emphasis on local-market promotions. The “New Way to Seafood” campaign will aim to dispel falsehoods and public misconceptions about seafood and showcase the work that the ASC has been performing since the program’s inception.
March 1, 2022 — The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) has launched one of its largest-ever rounds of public consultation starting 1 March and running to 30 April, 2022, seeking comments on the new ASC farm standard that will align all ASC-certified species under one standard.
The new single standard will benefit farmers and auditors through greater efficiency, and make it easier for stakeholders, such as NGOs, to assess and compare the ASC’s requirements for public consultation, the ASC said. Additionally, with this single, comprehensive standard, the ASC will be able to respond to changes in markets and the industry quicker than before.
Read the full story at SeafoodSource
June 15, 2021 — After years of development, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) launched a new feed standard on Tuesday, 15 June, seeking to “tackle one of biggest threats to aquaculture’s reputation.”
Recognizing that “unsustainable and irresponsible practices across the aquaculture feed-supply chain risk undoing the positive impact of the farming industry,” ASC’s new standards requires feed mills to meet a series of “strict environmental and social requirements; source ingredients from socially responsible suppliers; and use environmentally responsible raw materials.”
March 8, 2021 — The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) on Monday, 8 March announced the launch of its largest-ever public consultations, seeking feedback on two separate changes to its standards.
The public consultation, which seeks input from stakeholders, is looking for feedback on the council’s proposed environmental requirements on the aligned farm standards, which according to the ASC will cover all certified species “bringing efficiencies and improvements without compromising on quality.”
January 19, 2021 — The following was released by the Marine Stewardship Council:
Veramaris® has become the first microalgae oil producer for feed to achieve certification to the joint ASC-MSC Seaweed (Algae) Standard. The company responsibly and sustainably produces EPA & DHA Omega-3 algae oil [1] for use in the aquaculture industry as fish feed and pet food and is the first American producer to achieve the ASC-MSC certification.
Veramaris’ certified sustainable facility, which is entirely land-based, adds an estimated 45% to the global supply of MSC certified EPA & DHA Omega-3 [2] and covers approximately 15% of the global requirement for EPA & DHA in farmed salmon feeds.
According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), aquaculture is instrumental for meeting the increasing global demand for nutritional food while restoring the health of our oceans. To meet this growing demand sustainably, fish farms need responsibly-sourced fish feed – an ASC-certification requirement. This feed must contain the two key Omega-3 fatty acids EPA & DHA, which are vital for animal and human health and mostly come from wild-capture fish. One ton of Veramaris algae oil provides as much EPA & DHA as from 60 tons of forage fish.
The certification is good news for pet owners who want to provide their pets with optimal nutrition while reducing the environmental paw-print of their dogs and cats. Consumer research conducted for Veramaris has shown that 75% of pet owners are willing to pay more for pet food brands containing algae Omega-3. By including Veramaris algae oil in their products, pet food producers can offer customers a sustainable option for keeping their four-legged friends healthy and happy.
Patricia Bianchi, ASC-MSC Seaweed Account Manager said: “Congratulations to Veramaris on becoming the first producers of algae-derived Omega-3 to be certified against the ASC-MSC Seaweed Standard. This certification confirms that the operation minimizes the impacts on the environment, with good labor conditions and positive impacts for the community.
“Our oceans are under great pressure to supply fish both for direct human consumption and for feed in the aquaculture industry. We are hopeful that the sustainable and responsible production of Omega-3 from algae will help to relieve some of this pressure on wild stocks and help reduce the risk of overfishing.”
Karim Kurmaly, Veramaris CEO said: “This achievement is an imperative milestone on our journey to expand the world’s access to sustainable EPA & DHA Omega-3. We are committed to working with partners along the value chain to bring transparent and sustainable solutions to the industry that results in healthy fish, healthy food and healthy oceans for generations to come. I extend my gratitude to the global Veramaris team that has worked very hard to bring us to where we are today with this great achievement.”
Gaining the ASC-MSC certification required a rigorous audit process against dozens of requirements for good management practices. An in-depth audit over many days was carried out by an independent company, SAI Global that checked records, took measurements, and interviewed operators to assess whether the facility met every requirement in the standard. These requirements include responsible energy use, minimal impacts on biodiversity, fair treatment and pay for all staff and involves a public consultation period.
January 14, 2021 — Foodservice distributor Sysco will significantly increase its purchases of certified responsible seafood by 2025, as part of an enhanced commitment with its partner, World Wildlife Fund (WWF).
The Houston, Texas, U.S.A.-based distributor will also expand its current responsible sourcing program for its U.S. broadline business to include sourcing for its specialty and Canadian broadline business, Sysco said in a press release. It is adding new commitments to prohibit the sale of endangered species, advance its traceability work, and help address deforestation.
September 25, 2020 — There’s no way around it – 2020 so far has been a year wrought with difficult news and stark changes. A global pandemic has kept most of us apart. It’s made the future harder to imagine. Nevertheless, much of the seafood industry persists in its efforts to stay the course, feeding communities in a time of great need. We hope this year’s Top 25 list similarly nourishes your news feed with something good.
From 1999 to 2018, the editorial team of SeafoodSource and its previous incarnation, SeaFood Business magazine, worked tirelessly to produce a list of the leading North American seafood suppliers based on reported sales figures. Last year, we revamped our process, bringing you a new type of compilation celebrating the Top 25 seafood product innovations that have transformed the North American industry. In 2020, we have once again reshuffled the deck.
Cooke Inc.
It all began in 1985 with one family, one farm, and 5,000 salmon. Thirty-five years later, vertically-integrated corporation Cooke Aquaculture, headquartered in Blacks Harbour, New Brunswick, Canada, and a collective of other Cooke family companies together comprise one of the world’s largest seafood enterprises.
A business of such magnitude approaches sustainable development in a variety of ways. For instance, when it comes to certifying its True North Seafood products, Cooke has earned vetting from an array of third-party providers of some of the industry’s most stringent standards, including: the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP), BRCGS Global Standards, the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), Alaska Responsible Fisheries Management (RFM), the International Featured Standards (IFS), Soil Association Organic, Kosher, GLOBAL G.A.P. Aquaculture Standard, Label Rouge, Friend of the Sea, Crianza de Nuestros Mares (“Breeding from our seas”), ISO 14001 and ISO 45001, Halal, and Ocean Wise.
Read the full list and descriptions at Seafood Source
August 10, 2020 — The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) has made public its first monitoring and evaluation report, which showcases the impact of certified responsible aquaculture.
The report, released 5 August, highlighted improvements in the environmental performance of salmon farms in Norway, Canada, and Chile, and shrimp farms in Vietnam.
April 2, 2020 — Facing a marketplace that has been drastically changed in the span of less than two months by the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. seafood suppliers, distributors, restaurants, and wholesalers are adapting by switching up their sales methods.
A number of larger seafood companies have moved further into retail sales. Others are urging greater industry collaboration and a joint “Buy American” marketing effort. On the more local level, small- to medium-sized seafood suppliers have shifted to a much more significant online presence, offering to ship orders directly to Americans’ homes. Online marketing data group eMarketer projects direct-to-consumer (D2C) ecommerce sales to surge 24.3 percent to USD 17.8 billion (EUR 16.3 billion) in 2020.
March 23, 2020 — The reaction from U.S. consumers to the COVID-19 pandemic has scrambled how Americans are buying seafood. In response, U.S. foodservice distributors and seafood suppliers are shifting their focus away from a shriveling restaurant scene and putting more focus on supplying retailers.
As evidence of how badly restaurants have been hit by a crisis that has seen many restaurants forced to shift to take-out or close entirely, a number of major restaurant chains have announced significantly decreased earnings.
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