While there was much hubbub recently over Marine Stewardship Council recertification of the Alaska salmon fishery being handed over to a new client, Robert Zuanich, managing member of Silver Bay Seafoods, aims to set the record straight in an exclusive interview with SeafoodSource.
“PSVOA is a fishermen’s trade association, while MSC is a label for seafood sellers. I don’t think PSOVA felt like they were the ideal party to lead the parade,” said Zuanich, who is also a board member of the Alaska Salmon Processors Association (ASPA), the client that took over MSC certification for the fishery, and general counsel to PSVOA. “PSVOA stepped up on an interim basis and secured the certification of the fishery, and then passed it off to those seafood companies that wanted to use the label.”
“PSVOA accomplished its objective in providing Alaska salmon processors with the ability to sell their product with the MSC label if they so desired. Having accomplished its objective, PSVOA decided that it was appropriate for the processors to assume the duties and responsibilities of the MSC clientship,” PSVOA said in a statement to SeafoodSource. “PSVOA fully supports ASMI’s ongoing efforts to establish an alternative to the MSC label which promotes the Alaska salmon brand.”While major Alaska seafood processors, such as Trident Seafoods and Ocean Beauty Seafoods, withdrew financial support for MSC certification in 2012, ASPA represents smaller processors that want to meet foreign buyers’ demand for MSC-certified Alaska salmon.
“I do think there is a group of buyers, particularly in northern Europe, that are very strongly supportive of the MSC concept. From a Silver Bay standpoint, we had a number of buyers who said, ‘We really want you to keep this’,” Zuanich said. “We are in the sales business and the customer is right. Maybe the bigger companies felt they could ignore their request, but we did not.”
A total of nine companies will be members of ASPA, and six companies have already publicly stated that they are part of the organization: Silver Bay Seafoods, Copper River Seafoods, E.C. Phillips and Son Inc., Alaska Seafood International, 10th & M Seafoods and Ekuk Fisheries.
Silver Bay Seafoods is the largest of the six, and is a fisherman-owned organization. “It is a very good model for fishermen. We formed in 2007 and have built four seafood processing plants. We are in the process of building a fifth,” Zuanich said.
Meanwhile, Zuanich believes the lack of MSC-certified salmon in the international marketplace last season likely did not hurt the overall fishery. “I don’t think buyers turned their back on Alaska salmon. Alaska salmon is well situated; the demand is outstripping the supply,” Zuanich said.
