The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) ecolabel has been judged as one of the best in the Netherlands, according to the Dutch Independent Institute Milieu Centraal. The MSC label was ranked among the top 11 ecolabels out of 90 across multiple consumer categories. 

Top 11 ecolabels

These rankings are in no particular order but have been arranged alphabetically: ASC, Beter Leven, Demeter, EKO, European Ecolabel, Fairtrade, Milieukeur, MSC, Rainforest Alliance, RSPO Certified Sustainable Palm Oil, UTZ, and 2 labels outside the Netherlands but available in Dutch shops: Naturland Organic aquaculture fish, KRAV Swedish ecolabel.

Hans Nieuwenhuis, program director MSC Benelux said “Being one of the top 11 labels is testament to the credibility and robustness of the MSC Standard and the value that the label brings to seafood products. Consumers can rest assured that seafood with the blue MSC label has been responsibly caught by a certified sustainable fishery.”

90 labels and food brands were ranked according to their robust requirements on sustainability, transparency and control. The results were published on the ‘Keurmerkenwijzer’ consumer website and a report presented to the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Alliance for Sustainable Food.

The rankings system is in response to requests from the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Alliance for Sustainable Food and Authority Consumers & Markets (ACM) earlier this year. The rankings are expected to aid consumers as they make sustainable purchase decisions.

Ranking

The ranking is based on transparency and reliability of an ecolabel. Stakeholders together with experts participated in developing the system.

“A good ecolabel is reliable with robust and credible requirements for sustainability and is transparent in communication. Independent certification ensures trust and reliability, and as such must meet and maintain the highest standards. By ranking every two years we hope to stimulate a continuous improvement of labels” said Vera Dalm, Director of Milieu Centraal.

Download the report: ‘Top ecolabels for sustainable food: Results of ranking ecolabels and logo’s 2016’ (In Dutch).

Find out more about what the blue MSC label means >