Clackamas, Oregon, U.S.A.-based Pacific Seafood has become the first supplier to offer four-star Best Aquaculture Practices oysters.
The Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification program is run by the Global Aquaculture Alliance and is designed to identify environmentally responsible aquaculture operations.
“At Pacific Seafood we are dedicated to providing the healthiest protein on the planet, which is why having third-party validation by BAP of our entire supply chain for oysters is critical,” Chris Jones, hatchery operations manager for Pacific Seafood, said. “We are proud to begin offering our customers oysters that meet the highest standards of respect, throughout the entire supply chain, for the environment, workers and the community as well as animal welfare and food safety.”
Pacific Seafood’s BAP-certified oyster processing plant and farm are located in South Bend, Washington, while its BAP-certified oyster hatchery is located in Quilcene, Washington.
The facilities were given the highest designation in the GAA’s BAP third-party certification program. For “fed” species, it signifies that a product originated from a BAP-certified processing plant, was sourced from a BAP-certified farm, and has utilized seed and feed from BAP-certified hatcheries and feed mills.
While oysters feed naturally on phytoplankton in the seawater and don’t require feed from a feed mill, BAP determined Pacific Seafood can offer four-star BAP oysters as opposed to just three-star BAP oysters “because BAP’s mollusk farm standards contain many specifications for responsible stocking rates and monitoring of natural feeding processes,” GAA said.
“This is the first step toward the company’s goal that all Pacific Seafood oysters achieve four-star status. This year, the company will focus on certifying additional facilities and adding new four-star oyster products to the market,” GAA said.