The Dutch Producers’ Organization Mussel Culture on Wednesday announced that it has been awarded Marine Stewardship Council certification.
The Dutch mussel fishery has put a lot of effort into being environmentally friendly. In 2009, the Dutch Producers’ Organization Mussel Culture was one of the first shellfish associations to receive a grant from the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation in support of MSC assessment.
The fishery is located in the Dutch coastal region of the Wadden Sea and Zeeland Delta and comprises 65 fishing vessels. Mussel seed fished from wild mussel beds or collected from off-bottom seed mussel catching installations are grown on cultivation lots on the seabed. Total landings in 2010-11 were 56.6 million kilograms. The mussels are sold mainly to Belgium, Dutch, French and German markets. The season for Dutch mussels runs from July to early April.
As a condition of the certification, the mussel fishermen must present the results of an ongoing research project about the possible influence of the seed fishery on the long-term development of underwater habitats and on the impact of the suspended seed mussel collecting systems on the carrying capacity of the ecosystem. The project has been agreed upon as part of a memorandum of understanding between the industry, environmental NGOs and the government, and is due for completion in 2014.
“We have worked hard for this achievement and cooperated successfully with environmental NGOs and the government,” said Hans van Geesbergen of the Dutch Producers’ Organization Mussel Culture. “These joint efforts are now rewarded with the MSC certificate which allows us to provide retailers and consumers with our mussels that are not only of high quality but now also certified sustainable.”
More than 250 fisheries are engaged in the London-based MSC program, with 122 certified, 135 under full assessment and another 40 to 50 in confidential pre-assessment.
