The Canadian House of Commons’ Standing Committee on Fisheries and Oceans has developed a set of recommendations for new steps the country’s government should take to increase the traceability of its seafood products.
The committee’s 13 recommendations were assembled into a 29-page report and are designed to enhance the country’s traceability and labelling requirements. The steps were formulated through a study by the committee on “boat-to-plate traceability."
The first three recommendations tie together to advocate for the creation of a Canadian seafood traceability and labeling system, which “supports the ability of Canadians to make informed decisions when purchasing seafood, including considerations that could affect their health and the optimization and sustainability of the resource.”
The new system, according to the recommendations, should be interoperable with the European Union’s system and standards to “ensure full-chain traceability for fish and seafood products.”
“This system should be mandatory, rules-based, and applicable to all species, whether for import or export,” the report states.
Another recommendation by the committee is a second look at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans’ “Fish List,” in order to provide more consistent common names for fish and seafood. Added on to that is a recommendation to improve DNA testing to validate the labeling of imported and domestic seafood products.
Once the labeling and “Fish List” standards are completed, the report said, the next step should be collaboration between the Department of Fisheries and Oceans and other government departments and jurisdictions to develop awareness of the new standards among Canadian consumers.
The new recommendations have been welcomed by SeaChoice, a Canadian nonprofit advocating for seafood sustainability in Canada.
“We are glad the committee’s recommendations recognize the need for government to set and commit to a target date for implementing a seafood traceability and labelling system,” SeaChoice Sustainable Seafood Coordinator Christina Callegari said. “Otherwise, Canada will continue to lag behind and face increasing trade requirements from our international peers.”
SeaChoice presented its own set of recommendations to the committee, which it said are supported by a majority of Canadians.
“Demand for stronger traceability is evident, with recent polling in 2021 showing that 91 percent of Canadians think it is somewhat to very important that traceability laws require companies to track information like what species it is, how it was caught or farmed, and where it was caught or farmed,” SeaChoice said. “Further, a group of 26 seafood companies, grocery store chains, and experts recently called on the federal government to bring Canada’s seafood traceability standards into the 21st century.”
Many of its recommendations were adopted by the committee, including its guidelines for better seafood labeling and better traceability regulations.
The committee’s recommendations are, as of now, just recommendations – the government would need to approve them via legislation in order to implement them. Callegari and SeaChoice said they hope the House of Commons focus on advancing the recommendations through the legislative process.
“We strongly encourage the federal government to accept and implement the recommendations in full,” Callegari said. “Doing so could make Canada a world leader in promoting sustainable fisheries management, deterring illegal practices, verifying environmental and social responsibility claims, and encouraging Canadians to support local, sustainable seafood producers.”
Photo courtesy of Stefan Malloch/Shutterstock
