The Canada Newfoundland 3Ps cod fishery has achieved Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification, becoming the country’s first Atlantic cod fishery to do so.
To achieve MSC certification the 3Ps cod fishery demonstrated that it meets a high bar of sustainability set by the MSC Fishery Standard.
“We are proud of the work completed by everyone involved in the journey to achieving MSC certification for 3Ps cod,” says Alberto Wareham, CEO of Icewater Seafoods Ltd, a member of the client group for the MSC certification. “As the seventh generation of my family working in this fishery, sustainability is important to us. I know it is also important to our customers and we are confident that the MSC certification will provide the assurance that our cod comes from a sustainable and well-managed source. It will also help the fishery remain sustainable through the natural ecosystem variations experienced off our coasts.”
Many Atlantic Canadian cod fisheries were placed under moratorium in the 1990s as ecosystem changes and fishery management failures caused these once abundant stocks to fall. While cod populations in some areas have been slow to recover, the cod stock in NAFO zone 3Ps has improved. From 2010 to 2014 this cod stock was the subject of an extensive Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) led by World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF) with participation from Icewater Seafoods, Ocean Choice International (OCI) and the Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union.
The joint efforts by all industry stakeholders involved enabled the FIP to make significant strides in preparation for MSC assessment. Management improvements focused on identifying fishery reference points, the adoption of harvest control rules and studies of fishing gear impacts and bycatch.
Hundreds of fishers and plant workers along the south coast of Newfoundland depend on cod for their livelihoods. Cod from 3Ps is primarily sold in Europe and North America, and Icewater Seafoods has been working closely with retailers in the UK where both cod and the MSC ecolabel are sought by consumers.
The fishery has committed to set and meet improvement goals over the course of five years.
