The development of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council Presented

‘The development of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council’ Presented at ‘The UK Aquaculture Forum ’ Scotland House, Brussels. Dr. Philip Smith, 7 October 2010. © Marine Harvest

‘The development of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council’ Agenda: ● Why we need the ASC ● The ‘Dialogue’ Process ● Driving change through market transformation ● Adding Value. . . . © Marine Harvest

Creating Change on the Water © Regal Springs Tilapia • An independent, not for profit organisation, co-founded in 2009 by WWF and IDH (Dutch Sustainable Trade Initiative) to manage the global standards for responsible aquaculture, which are under development by the Aquaculture Dialogues.

Aquaculture Dialogues – a WWF initiative • Rainforest Marketing – 1980 s • Forest Stewardship Council – 1990 s • Marine Aquarium Council – 1990 s • Protected Harvest – 2000 • Climate Savers - 2000 s • New Program for IT Industry – 2007 • Aquaculture Dialogues – 2000 s

A ‘multi-stakeholder platform founded by the Dutch Government in 2008 ‘to accelerate & upscale sustainable trade in mainstream markets’

Sustainable consumption and production – a challenge for us all • The way we produce, use and dispose of goods is unsustainable and is rapidly depleting our planet’s natural resources. • Governments, businesses and individual citizens need to take action in order to create more sustainable societies. • EUROPEAN COMMISION Environment fact sheet Jason Clay WWF If current patterns of consumption continue, it is estimated that global resource use would quadruple within 20 years !!

… and clearly ‘a value issue’ for CEO’s and their shareholders “ We launched Plan A in January 2007 – ‘committing to change 100 things over five years – because we’ve only got one world and time is running out’. ” We're calling it Plan A because we believe it's now the only way to do business. Sir Stuart Rose, Executive Chairman, Marks & Spencer http: //plana. marksandspencer. com/media/pdf/plan. A-2010. pdf “Our mission of ‘saving people money so they can live better’ starts with low prices…but it doesn’t end there. It extends to being a leader in how we take care of our world. ” Mike Duke, President & CEO, Wal-Mart Stores Inc. Sustainability Summit, October 22, 2008 “I believe that today companies must post healthy economic results while acting responsibly, on both a social and environmental level. In my view, this ensures sustainable growth. Our customers seek quality products at a fair price which comply with the highest social and environmental criteria” Lars Olofsson, CEO, Carrefour. Group Carrefour - 2008 Sustainability Report

…and there is a financial risk also for banks to engage with non sustainable business which also translates to a value issue Daniela Mariuzzo, CSR Manager, Rabobank Brasil RETAIL, FINANCE AND THE FUTURE OF FOOD London, 28 April 2010 http: //www. future-of-food. com/events/london

The importance of aquaculture ● The fastest-growing food production system ● About half the seafood consumed comes from aquaculture now ● Population and economic growth will lead to increased demand ● Global catches of fish have been and are expected to remain stagnant ● Important for food security

Commercial fish stocks worldwide are fully exploited We need aquaculture. It is an efficient way to produce desirable, high quality protein food and will be a major contributor to improving food security

Aquaculture’s footprint on the environment & society As the scale and scope of global aquaculture continues to expand, so does the industry’s footprint on environment and society that includes: • Habitat conversion • Escapes • Antibiotic & chemical use • Social & labour issues • Benthic biodiversity • Feed resource impacts

Power of the Press Perceptions – Realities? • Is this fish or is this foul? The Aquaculture Disaster. Third World communities fight the'Blue Revolution' SHRIMP aquaculture, hailed as a promising export earner, is causing social and environmental havoc in many Third World countries, mainly in Asia. http: //www. twnside. org. sg/title/aqua-ch. htm • Chemical cocktail in farmed flesh • BBC – ”Warnings from the wild” • Atlantic salmon in BC waters, like exotic species around the world, are 'Super-un-Natural’.

Power of ‘Social Networking’ The Five Fundamental Flaws of Sea Cage Fish Farming Powerful media for the voice of ‘civil society’ The sea cage farming of carnivorous finfish such as salmon, tuna, cod and sablefish is fundamentally flawed in five ways: • the wastes produced by farming • the fish that escape • the diseases and parasites that occur in farms • the chemicals used to treat diseased fish • the problems of stock depletion and contamination of feed. http: //www. focs. ca/fishfarming/index. asp

Reputation Management © Marine Harvest "The perception you earn among the public does not necessarily give the objective truth about our business, but it is nonetheless our responsibility. It is vitally important to fill any such gaps, that includes not only perception gaps, but more importantly the quality gaps. A bad industry reputation may have serious consequences for our industry” Thomas Farstad, acting CEO Marine Harvest, Aquavision, Stavanger, 2010 http: //www. aquavision. org/index. cfm? id=298560

Aquaculture Dialogues – a WWF initiative The Aquaculture Stewardship Council aims to address these issues through the implementation of the ‘aquaculture dialogue standard’s. • …. a programme of multistakeholder ‘roundtables’ coordinated by WWF to derive standards for environmentally and socially responsible aquaculture. http: //www. worldwildlife. org/what/globalmark ets/aquaculturedialogues. html

Aquaculture Dialogues Initiated and coordinated by WWF http: //www. worldwildlife. org/aquadialogues

The Aquaculture Dialogue Process q. Credible – multi stakeholder, open and transparent, science based performance metrics 5+ years in the making, 2000+ stakeholders, q Effective – minimizes the environmental and social footprint of commercial aquaculture by addressing key impacts q Adds value – connects the farm to the marketplace by promoting responsible practices through a consumer (eco)label.

Dialogues Areas of Focus • Multi-stakeholder Multi- Stakeholder Governance • Review & revise standards & Structure procedures • Independent • Processes Standards Robust Verification System ISEAL ASC Comms • Robust, 3 rd party • Certification of aquaculture operations • Co. C certific ation

3 rd Party Certification The ASC will offer farm level annual certification, using accredited, thirdparty Certification Bodies that are ISO 65 compliant and a seafood (eco) label which will recognise and reward responsible aquaculture © Regal Springs Tilapia © British Trout Association © Anova Seafood

The ASC’s areas of focus Communication • Governance • Accreditation & Certification Structure ASC ISEAL BUILD CAPACITY • Raise producer awareness • Build capacity: producer support programmes • Producers & Suppliers • Processors, Retail & FS Funding CREATE DEMAND • Raise industry commitment • Develop con sumer interest

The ASC is more than a standards holding body, it is a global transformation system for aquaculture Jason Clay Senior Vice President Market Transformations of the World Wildlife Fund RETAIL, FINANCE AND THE FUTURE OF FOOD London, 28 April 2010 http: //www. future-of-food. com/events/london

Industry support for the ASC

Complementary to: Increasingly, retailers, food service companies and seafood processors believe that they have a responsibility to supply consumers with fish from responsibly managed resources, fisheries and aquaculture. The ASC (eco)label will give consumers an easy way to make the best environmental and social choice when shopping or dining out.

An open and transparent, multistakeholder approach gives the ASC standards credibility “the most wide public consultation on standards development in fish farming ever”. Peter Hajipieris of Birds Eye Iglo “with the ASC in place, we will have the assurance that the standards will be adhered to properly, which will bring credibility and longevity to the standards. ” Sysco Corporation “The standard setting process for new species such as shrimp, tilapia, and pangasius has gone further than ever before in reaching out through a transparent, multi-stakeholder approach, ” Aldin Hilbrands of Royal Ahold

…. and will build brand equity. Chris Britton, Findus Group CEO, said: “MSC is currently the only international consumer-facing label for sustainable seafood and now has sufficient scale that it is realistic for us to strengthen our own brands by using it for all our wild caught purchases. ” 26/04/2010 Findus Group boosts 'Fish for Life' programme with new MSC goal Findus Group endorses progress towards a consumer facing sustainability marque for farmed fish through the establishment of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council. Martin Glenn, Birds Eye Iglo CEO said ‘Sustainability’ is not an option. Sustainable sourcing underpins ‘ Fish the Brand’. BEIG is the largest branded supporter of MSC programme across Europe by volume. ‘Fish the Brand’ – controlling our own destiny, Brussels Seafood Expo 2010 – Business Leaders Speech Birds Eye Iglo is working with the Aquaculture Stewardship Council to adopt the Aquaculture Dialogue Standards for certifications by the ASC

Areas of Focus Mid 2011 • Governance • Accreditatio n/Certificatio n • Mid • 2011 • ASC © Unima Europe SAM • Producers/ • Suppliers • Industry/ • Retail/FS • Chain of Custody • Consumer Label • Building Capacity • Creating Market Demand • Market • Pull-through • Production Capabilities © Unima Europe SAM

Some people will only see costs – others will see opportunities. Sustainable growth without increased responsibility is not an option. Implementing processes to meet standards will improve performance by: minimising health issues. improving the environment. maximising feed efficiency. managing feed resources well and providing alternatives reduces cost volatility. measuring, monitoring, recording - better control. driving for innovative technological solutions. . . best practices leading to reduced cost = added value

‘Adding value with well defined environmental and social standards‘. • With better use of our planets resources our industry can make a real contribution to society and value to mankind. • Sustainable growth depends on increased responsibility. • Shareholder value – reputation & risk management • Credible standards and labelling builds consumer trust which in turn contributes to brand value • Tangible cost benefits from implementation of best management practices associated with voluntary standards • Reduced volatility – reducing supply/demand imbalances will have positive impact. • Retention of markets, access to markets.

The Aquaculture Stewardship Council Our vision: ● A world where aquaculture plays a major role in supplying food and social benefits for mankind without negatively impacting the environment. Our mission: ● To transform aquaculture towards environmental and social sustainability using efficient market mechanisms which create value across the chain. The ASC: Creating change on the water. © Brian O’Hanlon, Open Blue Sea Farms http: //www. ascworldwide. org