Sustainable Seafood Seafood Development Program
To address growing demands in the seafood and aquaculture sector, SGS has enacted a two-year development plan to increase awareness of its services in this dynamic environment. Driving safety, sustainability, and quality in key areas of seafood and aquaculture production since 2016, SGS has invested and expanded its global laboratory testing, auditing and certification capabilities.
Through this additional investment including talent acquisition, the company accelerated portfolio development to include Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certification and broadened the scope of the Best Agriculture Practices (BAP) certification scheme to include all farm standards.
In support of the portfolio expansion SGS held a number of events around the world inviting thought leaders and experts from industry and other interest groups to discuss challenges and opportunities facing the sector. Having established itself as market leader, SGS experts were invited to many seminars and conferences as guest speakers. In the latter part of 2018, SGS formed a partnership with Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch (SFW), Asian Seafood Improvement Collaborative (ASIC), and Minh Phu to work on a major new initiative which aims to help small-scale farmers to verify sustainable production, a partnership announced and supported by John Kerry, former US Secretary of State through the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace working on improving governance and advancing comprehensive approaches for sustainable development.
Cormac O’Sullivan
SGS Seafood and Aquaculture Audit and Certification Manager