Anova Seafood Calls On PNA Tuna Fleet To Start Landing MSC Skipjack ff

By Atuna.com

In a public letter, the Netherlands-based frozen and fresh fish distributor, Anova Seafood, is calling on fishermen in PNA waters to start catching sustainably so it can meet the European retail demand for MSC certified frozen skipjack tuna.
 
“To our great disappointment we have learned that since the beginning of 2012, tuna fishing companies in the PNA have not completed any successful trial trips for the MSC, and that generally motivation throughout the PNA tuna fishing industry to start fishing sustainably according to the principles of MSC has been minimal,” writes the company. Dated Oct. 22, the letter is addressed to the boat owners who fish in the region.
 
The Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) free school skipjack purse seine fishery, located in the Western and Central Pacific Ocean, gained the approval of the reputable Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) eco-label back in December 2011. Nearly a year later, however, fishermen are still using fish-aggregation devices (FADs) at the same rate to catch their tuna and the fishery’s Chain of Custody (COC) certification has not been approved.  COC is necessary to ensure the certified skipjack catch is kept separate from the FAD-caught tuna throughout the entire supply chain.
 
The continual use of FADs – which is unsustainable because juvenile tuna and other marine life are harmed in the process – means Anova is still waiting for the first shipment of MSC tuna from the PNA – cobranded as “Pacifical.” The company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Pacifical to supply MSC raw frozen skipjack tuna products to retailers and restaurants and was expecting to receive its first supply this past summer.
 
“We have been informing our customers it will be coming and delays will not help us with building trust in the market,” explains Lia Huisman, Anova’s corporate social responsibility officer. She says frozen skipjack is new in the market and they are working to develop it, but one important link is missing. “We need commitment from the boat owners to get the certification done.”  
 
Huisman says there is large interest from European retailers, but one basic requirement is that the fish be MSC certified. “When the skipjack is MSC certified, then they’re willing to take up the product.”
 
She says seafood sustainability is a group effort and important for both the fish resources and future generations. “The cooperation is a chain. If the chain is working well, then there is a future.”
 
Anova Seafood’s letter to the boat owners fishing in PNA waters can be read here.