During Sustainable Seafood Week consumers urged to choose MSC blue ecolabel
Nationwide list of fish and chip shops serving sustainable seafood launches
Brockley’s Rock in Brockley has been named a regional hero by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) for ‘going above and beyond’ to put sustainability at the heart of their business.
Seafood lovers can now, for the first time, easily find their nearest fish and chip shop serving sustainable seafood from a new digital list launched by the MSC UK today, as a celebration for Sustainable Seafood Week.
During Sustainable Seafood Week, which runs until September 24th, consumers are being urged to choose seafood products with the blue MSC ecolabel on and this includes MSC certified fish and chips. The label means the consumer can trust where the fish or seafood has come from while ensuring there will be plenty of fish left in the sea for future generations.
With fish and chips very much part of his family heritage, Kyriacos Karoulla, from Brockley’s Rock, in London, who learned the trade from his incredible mentor Great Uncle Frank, agrees: “Brockley’s Rock is proud to do our best to ensure sustainability and traceability is on our agenda and those of our partners. Healthy oceans are vitally important to us while continuing the nation’s iconic fish and chips heritage. This should be top of the agenda for all serving fish, not just chippies alone.”
The MSC regional heroes have sustainability running through everything they do. Kyriacos, whose customers can enjoy MSC certified cod and haddock from the Barents Sea and North Atlantic plaice, says: “Overfished seas have always been a topic of importance. When I opened Brockley’s Rock I had full control to apply best practise and ensure sustainable fishing and more from day one. Within the first few months of opening, we ensured we sourced from sustainable partners and embarked on creating partnerships directly with the MSC supply chain. We also applied this ethos through other parts of our business from biodegradable boxes to paper bags.”
Loren Hiller, MSC Commercial Manager, UK & Ireland, said: “Fish and chip shops play a vital role in educating their customers about sustainable fish and chips and we’re excited to be able to launch this list today showing exactly where seafood lovers can find their nearest sustainable fish supper.
“We’re asking everyone to join the national sustainable seafood movement. We can only make a difference if we all play a part.”
MSC UK is hosting a series of activities for Sustainable Seafood Week, including Sustainable Seafood Suppers with top British UK chefs showing how to make a variety of delicious sustainable seafood meals, for the whole family to enjoy. Chefs Mitch Tonks, James Strawbridge and Elizabeth Haigh will host ocean-themed cooking classes and share their top culinary tips.
One third of fisheries around the world have been fished beyond sustainable limits, and a further 60% are fished to their maximum capacity. Some 7 in 10 (72%) of seafood consumers agree that in order to save the ocean, we have to consume fish and seafood only from sustainable sources, according to research conducted for MSC by independent research consultancy, GlobeScan. Choosing the blue MSC ecolabel is an easy way for consumers to help safeguard seafood supplies for the future and keep the oceans teeming with life.
The MSC is an international non-profit organisation which sets globally recognised, science-based standards for sustainable fishing and seafood traceability.
The blue MSC label on a seafood product means that: it comes from a wild-catch fishery which has been independently certified to the MSC’s science-based standard for environmentally sustainable fishing; it is fully traceable to a sustainable source. It can be found on more than 100 species of seafood in 100 countries. Marine Stewardship Council | MSC in the UK | Marine Stewardship Council
