New Trends: The Impact of Non-Competitive Alliances among Japanese Fisheries Companies
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ASC (Aquaculture Stewardship Council)is committed to environmental conservation and social responsibility through the promotion of responsible aquaculture. In 2022, farmed seafood will account for approximately 57% of global seafood production, surpassing wild seafood for the first time.
This rapid growth in aquaculture is driving improvements across the industry and highlighting the importance of responsible business. We at ASC are developing certification standards and working to disseminate them so that aquaculture can grow sustainably and contribute to future food supplies and local communities.
In 2023, ASC certification continued to achieve great results in its activities to improve environmental conservation, social impact, and consumer awareness. In this column, we will introduce specific initiatives and the impact of these activities based on the 2023 annual report.
The mission of ASC certification is to promote the operation of aquaculture farms with minimal environmental impact and to fulfill its responsibility to local communities. Aquaculture is expanding worldwide, and the consumption of marine resources is increasing, but at the same time, issues such as water pollution, impacts on ecosystems, and labor rights issues are also occurring. To address these issues, ASC measures the impact on the environment and society and supports aquaculture farms to operate responsibly.
In addition, ASC prioritizes stakeholder needs, such as further increasing the sustainability of seafood and creating added value for certified seafood, while continually improving its program, supporting transformation in aquaculture sites, and implementing long-term strategies and measuring progress on an ongoing basis with the goal of increasing certified seafood and deepening consumer understanding of sustainable seafood.
The strategy is driven by a wide range of stakeholder feedback and is built around existing projects and new initiatives that aim to achieve ever-increasing goals: developing innovative projects and tools to help strengthen standards, certification and supply chain assurance, campaigns to raise awareness and drive demand in growing markets, supporting farms to meet ASC market demand, expanding and sustaining our influence, providing new value-added services for our customers (e.g. digital traceability and GHG accounting), and driving growth for the organization itself.
ASC has set strict standards to ensure that the rights of all people involved in aquaculture are protected. Our certification standards include basic labor rights such as the prohibition of forced labor and child labor, prevention of discrimination, and freedom of collective bargaining. This ensures that all workers at ASC-certified aquaculture farms are treated fairly and work in a healthy and safe environment. In addition, the number of employees working at ASC-certified aquaculture farms has reached more than 40,000, and many workers are provided with a safe and secure working environment.
In addition, ASCsGlobal Living Wage Coalition*1, we are also working to ensure a living wage. A living wage is the income necessary for workers to live healthy and comfortable lives with their families, and is a standard that goes beyond a simple minimum wage. ASC-certified aquaculture farms have implemented this living wage standard to improve the quality of life for workers.
Building relationships with the local community is also an important element of our activities at ASC. In particular, we are working to promote the concept of "free, prior and informed consent" (FPIC*2) and has implemented a process of discussing and obtaining consent in advance regarding the impact of aquaculture on indigenous peoples and local residents. This approach has enabled coexistence with local communities and promoted the spread of sustainable aquaculture. For example, aquaculture activities on land inhabited by indigenous peoples protect the rights of local residents to make decisions based on sufficient information, realizing sustainable resource management and contributing to the local economy.
In addition, in order to further strengthen the protection of labor rights in 2023, ASC has revised its standards through dialogue with stakeholders and set new requirements, such as stricter management of working hours. This has improved transparency and credibility, and promoted the sustainable development of the aquaculture industry.
ASC certification is expanding rapidly in markets around the world, spreading as a trusted choice for consumers. In 2023, there will be 52 farms in 2,062 countries and 58 types of fish certified. Of these, ASC-certified salmon accounts for approximately 30% of all aquaculture, and responsible production is expanding in the field of salmon farming. In addition, ASC-labeled products are sold in 116 countries, a 17% increase from the previous year. This international spread shows that the standards of responsible aquaculture are recognized globally and are becoming increasingly familiar to consumers.
Additionally, awareness of the ASC label is also growing among consumers. A survey of more than 14 consumers in 15,000 countries revealed that ASC is the most recognized farmed seafood label among farmed seafood certifications. Consumers trust independent certification schemes like ASC and feel that by choosing ASC-labelled products they are making a positive contribution to the environment and society.
ASC is also actively running campaigns in major markets to raise awareness. In 2023, we reached an estimated 11 million people through campaigns in 5 countries, spreading awareness among consumers that they can choose responsible seafood. In Japan, we conducted "Sustainable Seafood Week" in collaboration with the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) to communicate the significance of ASC and the MSC label and to raise awareness that consumers can contribute to SDGs 4,000 "Conserve and sustainably use the oceans and seas". This initiative will also help raise awareness of the ASC label in Japan, leading to opportunities for consumers to protect the oceans and the environment by making sustainable choices.
ASC is making significant improvements to its program and how it delivers assurance to key stakeholders and the entire supply chain. In the future, it is expected that many feed mills will be certified to the ASC feed standard to ensure that there is an ASC certified supply chain for farms. The new farm standard will require farms to responsibly source and produce ASC compliant feed.
The improvement program is now operational through a pilot phase, and is promoting improvements in aquaculture to contribute to improving the sustainability of the industry. In addition, through the promotion of digital transformation (DX), we aim to make the system more accessible to partner companies. The review of ASC's aquaculture standards is expected to lead to improvements across the principles of responsible aquaculture, and to increase the scope and accessibility of certification.
The ASC is actively advancing its activities, guided by its Board of Directors and Technical Advisory Group, which incorporates the insights of a diverse range of stakeholders, including industry, certification bodies and NGOs, while aligning its strategy with the SDGs. Going forward, we believe it is crucial that we continue to publish our annual report in a transparent manner and share our activities with you, so that we can clearly communicate how our efforts are progressing and build further trust.
We are grateful to the ASC certified fish farms, processors and distributors, all the stakeholders who have provided valuable feedback to the ASC program, and to the consumers who choose ASC labelled seafood.
The ASC's 2023 Annual Report is available on the ASC's website.
Text by Naomi Kawada, Communications Manager, ASC Japan
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Key terms and concepts to understand seafood sustainability.
