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Round Table on Eco-labelling and Certification in the Fisheries Sector, The Hague, The Netherlands, 22-23 April 2009

Year of publication 2009

Pages 52 p.

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Meeting

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) Over the past decade eco-labels and related certification have become a feature of international trade and marketing of fish and fish products. Eco-labels are a market-based mechanism designed to provide incentives for more sustainable fisheries management by encouraging buyers, from large scale retailers to individual consumers, to only purchase fish and seafood certified as having come from a sustainable fishery. Commitments to sustainable fish sourcing have become increasingly common in the p rocurement strategies and corporate social responsibility strategies of large-scale retailers and commercial brand owners. The Round Table forms part of the programme of work of the OECD Committee for Fisheries, specifically contributing to its project on Fisheries and Aquaculture Certification. Eco-labels have been on the agenda of the FAO Committee for Fisheries for over a decade. The Round Table will inform ongoing work at the FAO on responsible fisheries and on private standards in capture f isheries and aquaculture.

Language English

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    Roundtable on Eco-labelling and Certification in the Fisheries Sector 2009
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    The Round Table on Eco-labelling and Certification in the Fisheries Sector was jointly organised by the FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department and the OECD Committee for Fisheries. At the invitation of the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, the Round Table was held in The Hague, The Netherlands, on 22-23 April 2009. The Round Table brought together representatives from: the fishing industry (producers, processors, buyers, and retailers), NGOs, eco-labelling schemes, certif ication bodies, academia, governments, and relevant international organisations.
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    Product Certification and Ecolabelling for Fisheries Sustainability 2001
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    Product certification and ecolabelling are tools that can be used to support fisheries management. These tools, while inter-related and serving the same goal, have important differences as currently applied in fisheries. Product certification is commonly a measure mandated by governments, often mutually agreed upon by regional fisheries management organizations, in order to ensure that only legally harvested and reported fish landings can be traded and sold in the domestic or international marke ts. The principal objective of product certification (and catch documentation) is to prevent, deter and eliminate illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in accordance with the 2001 FAO International Plan of Action. Product certification does not necessarily involve a product label at the retail level. Where product certification comes with a label to inform consumers, however, it can influence consumers’ choices. This technical paper provides information on important institutional features and characteristics of product certification schemes including: the linkage with management objectives; the level of government involvement; their validation procedures; and, in the international context, how they deal with non-participants of regional fisheries management organizations and arrangements. Product labels can be mandatory or voluntary and may refer to different kinds of product characteristics or attributes including the product’s composition or contents, product quality or form, as well as environmental or social aspects of the product’s production process or method. The focus in this publication is on voluntary product labelling that conveys environmental information to consumers. The principal objective of an ecolabelling scheme is to create a market-based incentive for better management of fisheries by creating consumer demand for seafood products from well-managed stocks. This technical paper provides information on the theoretical foundation, institutional arrange ments and relationship with international trade law of ecolabelling programmes for fish and fishery products. It also discusses trade access concerns with ecolabelling programmes and examines their operational features including certification criteria, certification costs and chain of custody. The document includes a list of related sites on the Internet.
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    Book (stand-alone)
    ECO-LABELLING AND SUSTAINABLE FISHERIES 1999
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    The need for sustainable fisheries and the conservation of marine biodiversity are both internationally recognised. Both IUCN and the FAO share the goals of supporting and strengthening international and national efforts to improve the management of fisheries, coastal areas and marine biodiversity. In principle, eco-labelling has been endorsed by the international community as one of the tools that can help improve environmental management through market-based means. However, its applica tion to natural resource sectors has proven complicated and often controversial. The goal of this publication, jointly supported by IUCN and FAO, is to outline clearly some of the complications and concerns as well as the benefits in an objective fashion to provide an informed basis for moving forward.
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