January 2, 2022
MSC Withdraw Sustainable Status of Northeast Atlantic Mackerel Fisheries
On January 31st 2019 the Marine Stewardship Council announced a suspension of sustainable status for all the Mackerel fished in the North of Scotland because the stocks were very low and had been badly overfished. A recent inspection, only 6 months prior, in June 2018, part of the regular monitoring process of the MSC program, had not reached that conclusion and the fishery continued to be certified.
This vividly illustrates the downside of making guarantees around total fish stock. The truth is if Mackerel fish stock are in such a poor state now then all the recently fished mackerel certified sustainable under Msc rules was in fact fished when it was surely unsustainable? And the cut-off date between certified and non-certified was on or after March 2nd. so your supermarker bought Mackerel was fished sustainably if caught on the 1st of March but not if caught on the 2nd.
This vividly illustrates the downside of making guarantees around total fish stock. The truth is if Mackerel fish stock are in such a poor state now then all the recently fished mackerel certified sustainable under Msc rules was in fact fished when it was surely unsustainable? And the cut-off date between certified and non-certified was on or after March 2nd. so your supermarker bought Mackerel was fished sustainably if caught on the 1st of March but not if caught on the 2nd.
The MSC is in a difficult position trying to reign in overfishing and discipline the industrial fleets. It is far better placed and financed and positioned to make a stab at definng a sustainable fish stock than we are. And in both these aims it is a force for good. Unfortunately it is equally a force for bad when the over-focus on fish stocks through the P1 and P3 criteria detracts from wider holistic criteria that are under-represented or simply ignored in the MSC system. Worse, by validating a definition of sustainability that works in favours of large scale industrial fishing and large scale retailers it drives the final few nails into the coffin of small scale fishing.
Fish4Ever
January 2, 2022
