Mowi Canada West has announced all of its B.C. fish farms are now certified by the Aquaculture Steward Council, an independent, market-oriented organization aiming to minimize the environmental and social footprints of commercial aquaculture.
The designation will allow Mowi to market its farmed Atlantic salmon with ASC Certification labels in grocery stores.
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“This is a fantastic achievement that speaks to our team’s commitment to operating at the world’s highest standards,” Diane Morrison, Mowi Canada West managing director stated in a press release. “To achieve ASC certification, every farm must meet more than 500 measures of fish health, wild salmon protection, environmental stewardship, social responsibility and more. It really is a tremendous accomplishment.”
Among those measures, companies must demonstrate compliance with DFO sea lice thresholds, and monitoring and reporting programs.
According to ASC, its standards are developed in line with United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) guidelines and is the only aquaculture certification scheme to be recognized as a full member of the ISEAL Alliance Code of Good Practice for Setting Social and Environmental Standards, which requires inclusive and transparent standard setting.
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The ASC standard was launched in 2012. Audits are conducted every two years to ensure the standard is upheld.
In 2019 Mowi Canada West launched a sustainability strategy that included ASC certification for all of its 28 B.C. farms.
The farms at Sheep Pass and Cougar Bay in the Klemtu region of the mainland coast were the final operations to receive certification.
Speaking of this achievement, Chief Roxanne Robinson and Councillor Isaiah Robinson, Kitasoo/Xai’xais Nation said: “The traditional territories are of significant importance to us and we take who we allow to operate in our territory very seriously. It brings us peace of mind to know that Mowi voluntarily strives to reach the highest sustainability standard. It is of utmost importance that we take care of our traditional territories so we can ensure that we will have our lands and waters for our future generations. To know that the company has such high standards is really important to us. Our partnership has evolved over the years, Mowi has supported the community so well that we have strong ties and lifelong friendships.”
The audit reports are viewable on ASC’s website.
