UK supplier, MCS, MSC launch foodservice seafood guide

M&J Seafood in East Sussex, England, teamed with the Marine Conservation Society (MCS) and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) to publish a comprehensive sustainable seafood buying guide for the foodservice industry.

The first of its kind, the comprehensive guide on seafood products from responsible and certified-sustainable sources contains more than 300 fresh, frozen and chilled fish and/or seafood lines supplied by M&J Seafood. Compiled by M&J Seafood and pledged to undergo an annual third party traceability audit, the Safely Sourced Seafood List features fish and seafood that are rated 1 to 3 by the MCS, or certified sustainable to the MSC standard.

The project’s goal is to empower the chefs to participate in restaurant sustainability initiatives like Fish2Fork, Sustainable Fish City and the Sustainable Restaurant Association.

“For us, making sound choices is not just a matter of doing the right thing for the future of our seas; it’s about doing the right thing for our customers and their customers,” explains M&J Seafood’s Director of Fish & Seafood, Mike Berthet. “We are totally committed to keeping a close eye on the world’s fish stocks and sustainable practices, and to supplying the best of the world’s catch from well-managed fisheries and farms. That is why we have decided to take a two-pronged approach, demonstrating our commitment to this important issue while creating a constantly updated list of safely sourced seafood to help our customers make informed menu decisions. We have made it easy for caterers to bring sustainable choices to the menu so that we can all play our part in this significant global issue.”

“Sourcing sustainable seafood can be complicated. Seafood is one of the most internationally traded commodities and there is a range of factors to consider, depending on how and where the seafood was caught or farmed. This complexity has been a major hurdle, preventing restaurants making sustainable seafood choices,” said Samuel Stone, MCS fisheries officer. “This new collaborative initiative encompasses advice and recommendations from the leading UK environmental charities working with the sector, and makes it simple for any business to source seafood from the most responsible or certified sustainable sources. Ultimately, demand for sustainable seafood will pay dividends for both the seafood industry and the marine environment.”

“As a former chef it’s fantastic to see such a positive step being taken by M&J Seafood in proactively encouraging and enabling chefs and restaurateurs to source sustainable fish and seafood,” said George Clark, MSC UK commercial manager. “It’s sometimes a struggle to navigate all the advice out there and make the right sustainable decisions for your menu. With M&J Seafood’s Safely Sourced Seafood List all the hard work has been done for you and with the range of MSC products on the list it’s a great way to get the MSC ecolabel on your menu too.”

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