Retailers role and responsibility in fighting IUU fishing

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Retailers role and responsibility in fighting IUU
fishing
Retailers role and responsibility in fighting
IUU fishing Presentation for Chatham House IUU
Meeting 8th of May 2007 Sari Tolvanen, Oceans
Campaigner, Greenpeace International sari.tolvan
en_at_int.greenpeace.org
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The roots of IUU
The roots of IUU

• Consumer demand for cheap all year round supply
  of fish despite the decline of the worlds fish
  stocks
• Over capacity of the worlds fishing fleets

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Who sells all the fish?
Who sells all the fish?

• In Europe, the worlds largest seafood markets
  some 80-90 seafood is sold by supermarkets
• Retailers and supermarkets clearly have a
  responsibility to sell LEGAL products and source
  from stocks that are not ENDANGERD and ensure
  that the fisheries they support do not DESTROY
  the marine environment or livelihoods of coastal
  communities.

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• Greenpeaces approach to working with retailers

• Engage them to develop a sustainable seafood
  procurement policy
• -remove the worst (red list of species)
• -promote the best
• -improve the rest
• As a first step to avoid IUU fish policy not to
  source from blacklisted vessels and companies
  (http//oceans.greenpeace.orge/blacklist)

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Where is your fish come from?

• Traceability - it all comes down to knowing the
  supply chain down to the water (provisions for
  developing country fisheries)
• Retailers put pressure on suppliers, suppliers
  put pressure on the industry.
• Both to avoid IUU fish but also to improve the
  management and conservation measures of the
  fisheries and the marine ecosystems at large.

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Caught red handed?

• IUU scandals on the shelves quickly catches the
  attention of senior management
• Once engaged in improving one species have to
  take responsibility of a whole range of products,
  including legal over fishing (fish stolen from
  future generations/ coastal communities)
• Ultimately, keep sourcing from depleted high
  value stocks and retailers will keep running a
  risk of sourcing illegal fish

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Progress so far

• Greenpeace involved in negotiations with
  supermarkets in 9 European countries, the US and
  soon elsewhere.
• Ask for the retailers and seafood industry to to
  engage in longer-term discussions with
  Governments about sustainable management of fish
  resources in general and the specific need to
  deal with IUU fishing.

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Closing down the avenues

• Pressure on retailers quickly translates to the
  suppliers and the industry itself
• Barents cod scandal major progress in 2006
  along the supply chain
• New 2006 figures indicate less IUU in the Barents.

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And a lot more to do!

• Europe biggest market for IUU fish from
  West-Africa
• Tuna a scandal waiting to happen

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Closing down the net

• Requires action from all along the supply chain
• Need to be followed by regulations, otherwise
  someone else ends up buying the illegal cheap
  product
• Retailers a good tool for putting pressure on
  the industry on IUU and sustainability in general