Friday March 11 is Sustainable Seafood Day and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is encouraging all Australians to celebrate by enjoying delicious MSC certified sustainable seafood.

Abundance of choices

MSC Asia Pacific Director, Patrick Caleo said "The option to choose certified sustainable seafood in Australia has never been easier. Thanks to Coles, you can find MSC labelled seafood at deli counters across the country. IKEA is also serving MSC certified seafood on shelf and in their cafes nationwide.

Hats off to John West Australia, who has transformed their canned tuna business by overhauling their supply chain to bring more than a 100 million MSC labelled cans to our shelves, the largest supply of MSC labelled tuna cans in the world."

"We encourage people to look for the blue MSC ecolabel and I’ll admit, in the past it has been a challenge to find the blue tick but now it’s hard to miss it throughout the frozen, fresh, deli counters and shelves of Australian supermarkets," said Mr Caleo.

Welcomed new fisheries

The MSC also proudly welcomed the country’s first yellowfin, albacore tuna and swordfish fishery to achieve the blue tick with Walker Seafoods from the Commonwealth managed Eastern Tuna Billfish fishery becoming MSC certified. The Commonwealth managed Blue Grenadier also became certified as well as two more prawn fisheries, Exmouth Gulf and Shark Bay Prawns from Western Australia.

"The addition of two more prawn fisheries has tipped the scales of Australian wild-caught prawns to more than 50 per cent being MSC certified," said Mr Caleo.

"We’re also tremendously proud of Austral Fisheries who operate in four MSC certified fisheries for their bold and innovative initiative to become the first fishing company in the world to quantify, publish and then offset their total operational carbon emissions. This is a world first for a fishing business and one that operates in the coldest and hottest climates on earth."

Why it's important and how to get involved

"Seafood is the most consumed animal protein in the world, and the most traded food commodity, with one in 10 people in the world depending on fishing for their livelihood, by choosing certified sustainable and responsible seafood you’re helping to create a positive change in our oceans," said Mr Caleo. 

MSC certification rewards seafood producers who operate sustainably. It provides credible, independent third-party validation for practices that reduce impacts on the marine environment, protect local surroundings and wildlife, and support local communities.

Celebrate your love for the oceans with a Sustainable Seafood Day feast. Register to host your own Sustainable Seafood Day – and you’ll receive a free hosting pack including recipes, an MSC product finder, documentary film, infographic coasters and decorations for your sustainable seafood feast. Share your sustainable seafood pics with #forthesea for a chance to win a swag of prizes including a shark dive.