SANTA MONICA, Calif. – The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) and Santa Monica Seafood are catching a wave together this summer with a first of its kind retail promotion showcasing the benefits of certified, responsibly raised seafood and ASC’s sea green label to Southern California’s shoppers and diners.
ASC is the world’s leading certification and labeling program for responsibly farmed seafood, while Santa Monica Seafood is the largest wholesale, seafood-only distributor in the Southwest, including market and café locations in Santa Monica and Costa Mesa, Calif. The nonprofit organization and sustainability-driven company have been long-time partners in promoting the sustainable sourcing of seafood, supporting responsible seafood farmers and educating shoppers.
The “Sea Green. Be Green.” campaign — launching Friday, June 16 — is a 6-week collaboration in which Santa Monica Seafood will devote each week to promoting an ASC-certified seafood item and the farms where the seafood was raised across their market and café locations.
Through July 27, Santa Monica Seafood’s markets will offer limited-time specials while its cafés will feature newly developed menu items highlighting the certified seafood of the week. The promotion aims to provide seafood lovers and the seafood curious with opportunities to taste and learn more about the positive impacts of responsible aquaculture and how their simple choice to “Sea Green. Be Green.” can make a big difference. ASC-certified seafood under the spotlight will be available at:
- Riverence Provisions: A family of land-based farms that are responsibly raising rainbow and steelhead trout in the crystal clear waters of Magic Valley, Idaho. Set amid the Rocky Mountains, Riverence is the first U.S. trout farm to have achieved ASC certification.
- Del Pacifico Seafoods: Raising responsibly farmed, chemical-free shrimp along the scenic coast of Sonora, Mexico. Led by a commitment to improved sustainability and traceability, Del Pacifico’s ASC-certified farming practices help preserve the viability of both farmed and wild shrimp populations.
- Kvarøy Arctic: Pronounced “Kwa-ray,” this group of third-generation, ASC-certified salmon farmers on an island in Norway’s Arctic Circle have grand vision: to evolve open-water salmon farming into a sustainable practice that protects the environment, promotes animal welfare and provides a healthy source of protein for a growing world.
“We can’t wait to ‘Sea Green. Be Green.’ this summer!” said Roger O’Brien, President and CEO, Santa Monica Seafood. “We want to provide a simple message to our patrons: Look for the label. When you see ASC’s sea green certification label, you can have confidence that your seafood was raised responsibly, in accordance with Santa Monica Seafood’s highest quality promise and with ASC’s assurance that seafood farms have been met the strictest standards of care for the environment and surrounding communities. We’re excited to partner with ASC and this rock star lineup of brands to inspire our retail and café customers through continued conversation and education.”
“ASC is thrilled to add Southern California to our 2023 campaign roster as we continue our U.S. tour sharing the benefits of ASC certification across the nation,” said Athena Davis, Marketing Manager for ASC North America. “It’s important to recognize companies that have chosen to do the right thing by achieving certification, as it demonstrates the care they have for their customers, the products they serve and their sourcing requirements. Conservation and maintaining a healthy environment is baked into Santa Monica Seafood’s mission, along with providing the best quality products. We believe that is worth celebrating and couldn’t be happier to bring our ASC-certified farmers from Kvarøy Arctic, Riverence Provisions and Del Pacifico Seafoods along on this summer’s seafood promotion.”
June 15 Kickoff Reception
In true L.A. premier fashion, Santa Monica Seafood and ASC will host an invite-only reception the night before the official promotion launches.
Once doors close on Thursday, June 15, Santa Monica Seafood’s Santa Monica-based Market will play host to a kickoff gathering featuring ASC, Riverence Provisions, Del Pacifico Seafoods and Kvarøy Arctic. Over cocktails and chef-crafted samplings of shrimp, salmon and trout, Santa Monica Seafood and ASC will present a fun, fresh and impactful overview of the promotional series and its purpose.
Attendees will include area media, social influencers, retailers, seafood industry members, sustainability advocates and Santa Monica Seafood customers/seafood fanatics.
“Sea Green, Be Green.” is a part of more than a dozen local market events ASC is conducting throughout the year in Southern, Calif., Portland, Ore. and Washington, D.C. Now in the second year of its national campaign, ASC is building on the success of 2022’s activations to further increase awareness, interest and understanding of the value behind its sea green label and certification program among culinary influencers, shoppers and home cooks.
About the Aquaculture Stewardship Council
Since 2010, ASC has been creating and enforcing the world’s strictest standards in the industry for:
- Protecting the environment, workers and communities.
- Ensuring supply chain integrity from the farm to the store.
- Providing the most comprehensive transparency through public disclosure.
ASC’s sea green label only appears on seafood from farms that have been independently assessed and certified as environmentally and socially responsible. ASC’s sea green certification label is the best way to ensure the seafood you’re buying is what it claims to be. For more information, visit us.asc-aqua.org/.
About Santa Monica Seafood
Santa Monica Seafood, an 84-year-old privately-owned company, is the largest specialty wholesale distributor and processor of fresh and frozen seafood in the Southwestern and Midwestern U.S. with approximately 300,000 SF of facilities in 15 locations across the United States. It was the first and still the only seafood company in the United States to achieve FSSC 22000 certification for food safety management systems and ISO 14001 certification for environmental management programs. Santa Monica Seafood further reinforces its commitment to quality and sustainability by offering a variety of ASC and MSC-certified products.
