The Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA) on Thursday said a recent report from the Pew Environment Group ranking farmed finfish eco-labels is limited in scope, interpretation and inferred equivalency of organic, draft and operational mainstream standards.
The “How Green is Your Eco-label?” study funded by the Pew Environment Group scored and ranked the environmental performance of 20 marine finfish aquaculture standards and their corresponding eco-labels, based on a “well-established” quantitative methodology derived from the 2010 Global Aquaculture Performance Index. The GAA received one of the lowest scores in the report.
The GAA said it is pleased that the study included its Best Aquaculture Practices certification standards for salmon farms, which incorporate guidelines and quantitative criteria for the impact measures examined in the study.
However, the organization said Pew failed to consider social responsibility, food safety, animal welfare and traceability.
“For the study report’s rankings to have greater meaning, it may be helpful for the underlying analysis to be broadened to include these additional indicators so that a more balanced assessment can be made of how standards contribute to sustainable aquaculture,” said GAA in a statement. “It would also be helpful to consider impacts at other links in the aquaculture production chain. BAP’s comprehensive program includes not only farms, but also hatcheries, feed mills and processing plants.
“Although BAP did not receive the highest ‘green’ ratings — given to organic or draft standards in this case — it is not the program’s objective to set standards that can only be achieved by a small portion of the industry. The BAP program strives to effect the greatest industry improvement through highly adopted, real-world standards that continuously improve over time.”
