Look for Eco-Labeled Seafood Today!

News from the Monterey Bay Aquarium…

“Natural.” “Organic.” “Eco-friendly.”

With all the different environmental claims floating around these days it’s hard to know what they really mean and whether they represent truly sustainable options. When it comes to seafood, the bright blue eco-label of the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) has been an important part of European seafood shoppers’ experience for years – and it’s growing in recognition here in the United States. Consumers can feel confident that this label is the most credible sustainable seafood eco-label in the marketplace today.

This year the MSC, is celebrating its tenth year as the global certification standard for wild-caught seafood. Recently the World Wildlife Fund, which co-founded the MSC, announced it plans to develop a similar Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) for farm-raised seafood. For a wild fishery to become certified as sustainable to the MSC standard, three criteria are reviewed by an objective, third-party auditor. They assess the sustainability of the fish population, the impact of this fishery on the ecosystem and the effectiveness of the fishery’s management plan. Only seafood products from certified fisheries can display the MSC eco-label, and these products are fully traceable through the supply chain back to the certified fishery.

To help you find these products, Seafood Watch identifies all fisheries certified to the MSC standard. Look for the blue plus sign ( + ) on the Seafood Watch pocket guides (contact us to receive a pocket guide or click here to download the seafood guide iPhone app for free), or the blue eco-label with our seafood recommendations on the website.

Here’s what you can do:

1. Use seafoodwatch.org to find out if your favorite fish are certified, and then look for the MSC eco-label on seafood products when you eat out or go shopping for seafood. You can find MSC-labeled products — frozen, canned and fresh — at many major retail locations. Note: Even if a fishery is not yet MSC-certified, you can rely on Seafood Watch “best choice” options for farmed or wild seafood by using Seafood Watch recommendations. (The Monterey Bay iPhone and mobile applications make this easier than ever!)
2. The more common the Marine Stewardship Council eco-label becomes in the marketplace, the easier it will be for everyone to make sustainable seafood choices. So, please share this information with your friends so they’ll know what to look for, too.
3. Ask your favorite restaurant or retailer to offer more MSC-certified seafood. You can direct grocery store and restaurant managers to the MSC website, where they can learn how to find suppliers of certified seafood.