U.S. Senator Mark Begich has sent a letter to Wal-Mart president and chief operating officer Michael Duke, urging the company to re-evaluate its decision to only sell seafood certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC).
“The MSC’s effort to promote sustainable fisheries has become more of burden than a boost to sustainable fishing in Alaska,” said Sen. Begich. “Alaskans wrote the book on responsible, sustainable fisheries management. To have to try to comply with the moving target that is MSC standards is not only unrealistic, it’s insulting.”
Because of frustrations with the MSC’s ‘ever-changing standards’, Alaska last year initiated a sustainability certification program based on the FAO Code of Conduct for Responsible Fisheries and eco-labeling guidelines and independently certified by Global Trust. It is accredited by the International Organization for Standardization which is used by fisheries in Iceland and Canada.
“Alaska was one of the world’s leaders on fisheries sustainability decades before MSC was even founded,” said Sen. Begich. “We still are a world leader on fisheries management. We stand by our record of fishery management. We stand by our fish. And Wal-Mart customers should be able to purchase Alaska seafood products - the original sustainable seafood.”
Sen. Begich applauded Wal-Mart’s corporate commitment to sustainability but urged the company to consider other reliable and certified suppliers with a proven track record of fisheries sustainability. Sen. Begich plans to further discuss this issue with Wal-Mart in the coming weeks.
