A new project led by Seafish and supported by Sainsbury’s is designed to benefit England’s traditional coastal fisheries, representing around 7,000 vessels.
Called Project Inshore, the initiative will, for the first time, produce sustainability reports — using assessments based on the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) standard for sustainable fishing — for each fishery on the English coast, providing “a roadmap that highlights best practices.”
“Locally caught British fish from inshore boats are the backbone of Sainsbury’s fish counters, so it’s important that these fisheries are well managed to ensure sustainable supplies for the future,” said Ally Dingwall, Sainsbury’s aquaculture and fisheries manager. “By 2020 all of the fish we sell will be independently certified as sustainable, and Project Inshore is an effective way of providing English inshore fisheries with both long term management plans and the opportunity to move forward into MSC assessment.
“Sustainable fisheries are essential if the world is to retain its primary renewable source of protein and protecting the integrity of marine ecosystems remains one of the major challenges,” added Dingwall. “With this project we can join forces and not only understand the state of the fisheries but ensure stocks are being managed effectively.”
Sainsbury’s is the United Kingdom’s No. 1 retailer of MSC-certified seafood.
