We’re delighted to have Cornish chef James Strawbridge on board as our newest MSC UK & Ireland Ambassador. Our Social Media and Campaigns Manager Miranda Love shares why we’re so excited about this collaboration and what we’re jointly working towards.
How did James come to light as a suitable ambassador?
Before our Sustainable Seafood Week 2021 campaign, we spotted that James was doing some great collaborations with a selection of seafood brands in the South West and bringing a fresh, innovative approach to the fish and seafood sector. For MSC, it was an obvious partnership for us to reach out to James about, and we kicked off our collaboration last September, with it developing this year into a more long-term partnership. James is a real innovator and thought leader when it comes to fish landing on our shores.
What about James’ makes him a good fit for MSC?
James is a keen environmental activist who wants to equip people for the climate crisis by sharing essential skills in an inspirational way. The MSC is an international non-profit organisation on a mission to stop overfishing. For over 25 years, we have been working with fisheries, seafood companies and scientists to help protect the oceans around us and safeguard seafood supplies. James’ expertise as a sustainable living expert is closely aligned with our organisational mission, vision and values. We’re confident that through working with him, we can better educate more UK and Ireland seafood consumers on the importance of buying seafood with the blue MSC ecolabel, as well as improving consumer confidence with seafood skills, preparation and knowledge.
Tell me a bit about James’ food background
James is a passionate chef, self-sufficiency and sustainable living expert as well as a food photographer, digital media and recipe creator for range of food clients including: Le Creuset, Cornish Sea Salt and Ocean Fish. James is currently working on his new book for Chelsea Green called Seasoned and has extensive experience as a food writer, having written several books with major publishers, regular articles and commercial marketing materials. He’s also recently presented the series of BBC Northern Ireland’s ‘Strawbridge over the Drawbridge’.
How long will the partnership last for, what are the common goals?
The focus on the partnership has really been on this year, 2022, and our most ambitious Sustainable Seafood Week campaign yet. We took James all the way to Shetland so he could immerse himself in the sustainable fisheries that we work with (read more on James’ account of our day trip to Whalsay Island); who knows what's in store for 2023!
What are the plans with James over the partnership?
James was one of our Sustainable Seafood Week 2022 ambassadors, along with Mitch Tonks and Verna Gao, and produced two of our Sustainable Seafood Suppers, as well as a whole host of other recipes for the campaign. We’ve got more recipes to come from James across the remainder of this year to celebrate our MSC UK and Ireland fisheries, as well as MSC-certified seafood products available from supermarket shelves near you.
Anything else you fancy telling me!
While in Shetland James visited the MSC certified crab and scallop fishery to shoot some recipes and a feast to feed the local sustainable seafood community. James’ recipes were photographed by renowned food photographer David Loftus and shot by Cornwall-based videography agency Pixel Rain. The weather was wild, and so was the theme for the recipes, with James foraging local seaweed and edible flowers to style the dishes.
