Big Y, celebrating its 75th anniversary this year as a family owned, American business in New England, has something new to celebrate, Marine Stewardship Council Chain of Custody certification for its fresh seafood counters. The distinctive blue MSC ecolabel now appears in Big Y fresh cases to help customers identify MSC certified wild caught seafood.
The MSC Chain of Custody certification is a comprehensive traceability program that traces seafood from the fresh case back to an MSC certified fishery. It ensures that MSC labeled products are sourced from a fishery that has been independently assessed and met the MSC’s rigorous, scientific standard, and it protects buyers and the fishery from fraudulent labeling and risks from fisheries carrying products from illegal, unregulated and unreported (IUU) fishing. As a result, the sustainability of the source of that seafood product is ensured and the MSC certified fishery of origin receives well-deserved recognition for its environmentally responsible fishing practices.
To obtain MSC Chain of Custody (CoC) certification, a grocery retailer must pass an independent, third-party audit that is conducted by an accredited certifier, and it must undergo annual surveillance audits to demonstrate it continues to meet the standard. The CoC standard focuses on having an internal traceability system and reliable operational systems in place to ensure that MSC certified seafood is kept separate from non-certified seafood. Worldwide, more than 1,800 companies have obtained Chain of Custody certification.
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