SAN DIEGO–South Pacific Tuna Corporation (SPTC), in conjunction with FCF Fishery Co. of Taiwan and the Western Pacific Sustainable Tuna Alliance, announced today that the Western and Central Pacific Skipjack and Yellow Fin Free-School Purse Seine Fishery has achieved and received the coveted Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Standard for Sustainable Fishing certification.
MSC is recognized as one of the world’s most rigorous and credible, science-based assessments of sustainability for wild-caught fish, and is founded on three principles: healthy fish stocks, minimizing impact on the wider marine environment, and effective fishery management.
The certification decision was validated by third party certifier, SCS Global. The fishery operates under three flagged nations: the United States of America, China, and Taiwan. Authorized vessels principally fish for skipjack and yellowfin tuna within in the Exclusive Economic Zones of countries that are Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA), as well as the high seas.
The certification is the culmination of four years of effort to establish a complete protocol from harvest criteria to chain of custody parameters that ensure rigid sustainable standards as part of the MSC certification process. It is also a resounding confirmation to the health of the fishery stocks as mandated by MSC under the harvest standards. The MSC Chain of Custody standard requires that all certified product caught in certified fisheries can be identified and traced throughout the supply chain.
“This certification is an important step we have worked diligently to meet the standards of MSC’s three principles, and are proud to be the leader in driving sustainable practices, as well as establishing a standard that exceeds that of the NGO community,” said South Pacific Tuna Corp Vice President of Environmental Development and Government Affairs Ray Clarke.
According to Clarke, the companies will now provide in excess of 100,000 tons of MSC-certified tuna to the global market.
Both FCF and SPTC have been a leading participant of the Pacifical supply chain since inception in 2015, and will continue to provide MSC-qualified fish under their global program.
Source: South Pacific Tuna Corporation
