Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)
The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) runs a globally recognised certification programme for sustainable seafood. Some of our fish products are sourced from fisheries that are certified to the MSC standard – a partnership we hope will help raise awareness of the need for sustainable sourcing.
The MSC has three principles required by a fishery in order to meet its standard:
- The fishing activity must be at a level which ensures it can continue indefinitely
- Fishing operations must be managed to maintain the structure, productivity, function and diversity of the ecosystem
- The fishery must comply with relevant laws and have a management system that is responsive to changing circumstances
For more information on the MSC visit www.msc.org
Fisheries management
We recognise that improvements are needed in the management of global tuna stocks and that Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (RFMO’s) need to be able to set and enforce the rules required to improve tuna sustainability.
Princes consistently co-signs calls to tuna RFMO’s led by ISSF, WWF and the NGO Tuna Forum to improve the management of tuna fisheries. These calls represent a consensus between industry and NGOs in the need for a science based approach to improving:
- The development and implementation of comprehensive, precautionary harvest strategies
- Effective monitoring and management of fish aggregating devices (FADs)
- Strengthened monitoring, control and surveillance tools, including increased observer coverage through human observers and/or electronic monitoring
- Greater focus on implementation of bycatch mitigation actions through its involvement with ISSF, Princes supports research and development with the aim of improving tuna sustainability and reducing its wider environmental impacts. This includes the development of non-entangling FADs – that are now required throughout our supply chain - and ongoing research into biodegradable FADs. In addition, Princes is independently verified for compliance with all ISSF conservation measures including the prohibition of shark finning and delivery of best practice training for vessel skippers to reduce bycatch.
Earth Island Institute (EII)
The Earth Island Institute (EII) was founded in 1982 to support people who are creating solutions to protect our shared planet.
The EII runs a specific international monitoring programme aimed at eliminating any impact on dolphins, turtles, sharks and other sea life as a result of tuna fishing. Its monitoring helps ensure that the catch methods used by tuna suppliers are legitimate, responsible and dolphin friendly.
More information on the EII can be found at www. earthisland.org/imp