Data released by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) shows surging demand, sales and production of certified sustainable tuna on a global scale.
The MSC is forecasting record sales of tuna products carrying the blue label; 130,000 tonnes in 2021/22, more than doubling the 50,000 tonnes sold five years ago.
According to the MSC, this growth has been supported by new, company-wide commitments from retail and seafood giants including Lidl, Aldi, Edeka, Rio Mare, Followfood, Waitrose, Walmart and John West Australia to source only sustainable tuna.
Increases in sales of sustainable tuna have also been supported by fishing companies investing in more sustainable fishing practices, reducing the environmental impacts of tuna fishing to achieve MSC certification, giving buyers and consumers assurance of the sustainability of their catch. The total global MSC certified tuna catch reached a record of almost 2 million tonnes in 2021/22 compared to landings of under 1 million tonnes in 2017/18.
‘The surging sales of MSC certified sustainable tuna show a real positive shift in the way tuna is caught,’ said Chief Programme Officer Nicolas Guichoux.
‘Consumer and retailer demand for sustainable tuna, together with more eco-friendly fishing operations have resulted in a rapid shift in the way tuna is caught globally.’
While 39% of the world’s commercial tuna catch is now certified as sustainable to the MSC standard, the organisation warns that this progress could be undermined if international governance in the Western Central Pacific fails to adopt a long-term strategy to ensure the continued health of skipjack tuna, the world’s most commercially important tuna stock.
Despite the region’s strong track-record in sustainable fishing resulting in healthy tuna stocks, long term certification of tuna fisheries in the Western Central Pacific will require the 26 nations responsible tuna fishing in the region to agree to rules aimed at ensuring stocks never become overfished.
‘Tuna swim vast distances – they are truly international. Therefore, sustainably managing tuna requires agreement between governments at an international level,’ Nicolas Guichoux said.
‘Ongoing sustainable certification of all tuna fisheries is therefore conditional on joint strategies to prevent tuna stocks from ever becoming overfished. These strategies are notoriously difficult for international management organisations to agree because they require multilateral agreement on future catch reductions should healthy stocks ever start to decline. We are urging members of the Western Pacific Fisheries Commission to support the adoption of these rules to ensure the long term health of this vital tuna stock and also the incredible commitments made by retailers and consumers to choose tuna with the highest assurance of sustainability.’
