The aquaculture industry represents a critical food protein source to alleviate the pressure on global fish stocks and meet the increasing demand for seafood products. Its impacts are considered and addressed through legislation and voluntary certification programmes in many degrees. But the degree of coverage varies from country to country, and there needs to be a globally accepted approach to many of the challenges aquaculture poses. This was the case of fish welfare that had been overlooked until it became a buzzword for public perception and product acceptance.
The vision of the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) is a world where aquaculture plays a major role in supplying food with a minimum negative impact on the environment. Fish welfare was identified as a topic to expand. Supporting factors for inclusion were:
· Planet: Welfare is a key factor of sustainable production.
· Fish: Fish are sentient beings, and current aquaculture practices may impair welfare needs and thus need to be addressed.
· Science: There is sufficient applicable scientific research available on fish welfare for ASC to support expanding its current health and welfare-related indicators for different species.
· People: Consumer acceptance of aquaculture products will be increasingly influenced by the extent to which the industry is perceived to be dealing with fish welfare.
During this speech, ASC will present its ongoing work on developing a set of welfare indicators applicable across a range of species and which strive to move the aquaculture sector one step further in terms of producing seafood in a welfare-friendly manner which adds an extra value to the ASC label.