Living Oceans Media Releases 2008-05-07 23:00:00

(Halifax, Vancouver) SeaChoice, Canada’s sustainable seafood program, and its five member organizations, joined nine U.S. environmental groups today in releasing the “Common Vision for Environmentally Sustainable Seafood”. These organizations- which all have a strong history of working with the seafood industry and policymakers- have partnered to form the Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions.

The Common Vision outlines realistic steps companies can take to develop and implement a comprehensive, corporate policy on sustainable, wild-caught and farmed seafood.

“The Common Vision provides businesses that buy and sell seafood with a clear path for moving ahead with sustainable seafood purchasing”, said Anna Magera at Ecology Action Centre.

“In the past, we’ve heard from companies that there is too much competing information about environmentally responsible seafood”, said Jennifer Lash from the Living Oceans Society. “Seafood buyers and suppliers now have consistent input from a broad range of conservation groups about how to move forward.”

The Common Vision identifies six critical areas where companies can take action to ensure a sustainable seafood supply and protect ocean environments:

Making a commitment to develop and implement a comprehensive, corporate
policy on sustainable seafood;

Collecting data to assess and monitor the environmental sustainability of their
seafood products;

Buying environmentally responsible seafood;

Making information regarding their seafood products publicly available;

Educating their consumers, suppliers, employees and other key stakeholders about environmentally responsible seafood; and

Engaging in and supporting policy and management changes that lead to positive environmental outcomes in fisheries and aquaculture.

“The SeaChoice groups are committed to working collaboratively with the seafood industry, particularly large retailers that market seafood, to find ways ensuring sustainable seafood is standard fare in the marketplace”, said Bill Wareham of the David Suzuki Foundation.

For more information on SeaChoice or to download a copy of Canada’s Business Guide to Sustainable Seafood, please visit www.seachoice.org. For more information about the Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions and the “Common Vision for Environmentally Sustainable Seafood,” visit www.solutionsforseafood.org.

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