There is no doubt that the growing demand of sustainable seafood in the US soon pushes the aquaculture industry on the top. The demand for sustainbly farmed Arctic char that the supermarkets are introducing new standards for the farmed fish and shrimp that make up roughly half of U.S. seafood consumption, riding a wave of consumer demand for environmentally friendly products.
In this process Whole Foods made the first comprehensive set of aquaculture guidelines. Wal-Mart has established standards for farmed shrimp and certified its factories with the Aquaculture Certification Council. And Wegmans worked with Environmental Defense Fund on its farmed-shrimp policy to ban antibiotics, avoid damaging sensitive habitats, treat waste water and reduce the use of wild fish to feed shrimp.
Jill Schwartz, a spokeswoman for the World Wildlife Fund, informed that these guidelines will help the farmers to get what the demand is for. It is true that demand for seafood has grown as U.S. consumers increasingly accept it as an alternative to red meat and poultry. The American Heart Association recommends eating fish twice a week for the omega-3 fatty acids.
Globally aquaculture industry is worth $70 billion and supermarkets increasingly rely on this to help that demand as the supply of wild-caught fish remains limited. Although the non-profit Marine Stewardship Council provides certification for suppliers of wild-caught seafood, there is no widely accepted standard for sustainable farming practices.
There are other independent groups establishing aquaculture guidelines such as the World Wildlife Fund, the Global Aquaculture Alliance, in Europe, the Global Partnership for Good Agriculture Practice, etc. According to Whole Foods it decided to develop its own comprehensive plan two years ago, and it began consulting with environmental groups and scientists and visiting its suppliers’ farms.
