The Dutch Ekofish Group North Sea Plaice fishery has been awarded the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) [1] certification as a sustainable and well-managed fishery. The fishery’s certification follows a rigorous 16-month independent assessment.
Louwe de Boer, general manager of Ekofish Group says: “We were convinced that our twinrig fishery is sustainable and wanted independent verification of this through the MSC certification process. Our markets are demanding MSC-certified flatfish and our investment in improving our fishery to meet the MSC standard will absolutely pay off. We are very proud to be the first North Sea plaice fishery to be awarded the MSC certificate”.
The Ekofish Group comprises four twin-rigged vessels targeting plaice with 120mm-140mm meshes and landing 2,500 metric tons of North Sea plaice for the Northern European market. This is approximately 5% of the total EU quota (Total Allowable Catch). The North Sea Plaice stock is assessed as being within safe biological limits and the large mesh size used means that discards levels are low. The Ekofish Group’s fishing season runs from 1 April to 1 December in order to avoid spawning plaice. As part of the ongoing certification of the fishery, Ekofish Group has voluntarily agreed with WWF and North Sea Foundation to close selected areas and to participate in scientific research programmes to map the impacts of the gear on habitats and benthos.
Carel Drijver, head of the Coasts and Oceans programme of WWF Netherlands says: “WWF is very pleased to see the first MSC-certified North Sea plaice. We have been closely involved in the process and whole-heartedly support this certification. It has been agreed to reduce cod by-catches and to stop fishing in some vulnerable areas to allow benthic communities to recover in due time. We hope that more fishermen will follow the example of the Ekofish Group so that the supply of sustainable fish increases. That’s good for fishermen and for nature”.
Mrs. Gerda Verburg, the Dutch Minister for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality for Fisheries, is very proud of the achievement of the first group of North Sea Plaice fishermen who have been awarded the MSC-certificate: “An MSC label is not won easily; it requires passion and hard work. Fishermen have to be innovative and prepared to continuously invest to maintain a sustainable and well-managed fishery. But once fishermen have got the MSC certificate they will benefit from a great public image in return. Respect among buyers and consumers will continuously grow as today’s consumers look beyond simply the taste of fish on their plates.”
Rupert Howes, Chief Executive of the MSC added his congratulations to the fisheries: “Congratulations to Ekofish Group, which is the first fishery to be certified as part of the Memorandum of Understanding between the Dutch industry, the environmental NGO’s and the government to bring all Dutch North Sea demersal fisheries in the MSC programme by 2012. This certification is a model for how cooperation between fishermen and environmental organisations can benefit the management of our oceans”.
From the 5th of June MSC certified North Sea plaice will be available in the top restaurants in The Netherlands, retailers ICA in Sweden and COOP in Switzerland. More points of sale are due to follow soon.
