Two tilapia farms have become the first in China to be certified as sustainable by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), the organization said in a statement.
Qionghai Zhongpingzi Grobest tilapia farm and Chengmai Xingyuan Development Co Ltd received their certificates at the Sustainable Seafood Forum held in Qingdao this week. Both farms send their product to processors Hainan Xiangtai Fisheries Co., Ltd and Hainan Sky-Blue Ocean Foods Co., Ltd.
“For us it is important be able to show through a third party that our ambitions towards responsible tilapia farming have been achieved,” said Liu Rongjie, president of Xiangtai Fisheries. “The ASC certification of Chengmai Xingyuan Development Co. Ltd helps us communicate this to our stakeholders.”
The farms received certification after going through an assessment process with help from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) in China.
“The farms were subject to scrutiny by a team of independent experts, which assessed them against the strict requirements of the ASC Tilapia Standard,” said Chris Ninnes, ASC’s CEO. “This is a major milestone and they should be immensely proud of their achievements.”
A third tilapia farm, Wenchang Zhou Qinfu, has been assessed against the ASC standard and hopes to be certified soon.
