U.S. Sen. Mark Begich continued to challenge Walmart’s seafood purchasing policies and urged incoming president and CEO Doug McMillon to make sure Walmart customers can purchase healthy, sustainable Alaska seafood regardless of a third party label.
In a letter sent Tuesday to McMillon, Sen. Begich encouraged the new CEO to continue the conversation about sustainable fisheries that began last year between CEO Michael Duke and Alaska fishermen and seafood industry groups. Alaska fishermen were concerned about Walmart’s reliance upon the Marine Stewardship Council, a third-party sustainable fisheries certification organization located in London, to approve Alaska salmon and other seafood as “sustainable.”
Sen. Begich, a passionate supporter of Alaska fisheries, invited McMillon to visit Alaska to meet firsthand with fishermen, processors, biologists, fisheries managers, and other Alaskans dedicated to seafood sustainability. According to Sen. Begich, Alaska is the gold standard for sustainable fisheries management and Walmart should not rely on a European organization to advise them about Alaska fish.
