The 100th seafood product in Japan certified by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) was announced at the end of April, 2008. The first MSC-labeled product was launched in July 2006, after which MSC opened its local office in Tokyo in May 2007. In October the same year, Japanese Consumer's Co-operative Union (JCCU) started selling 17 MSC-labeled products, which resulted in a rapid increase in the number of products.

MSC is a certification program aimed at preserving global marine fishery resources from indiscriminate fishing. An increase in the number of certified marine products purchased in the market will lead to sustainable and well-managed fisheries. Consequently, this program can encourage the consumption of marine products without damaging fishery resources and the ocean environment.

MSC Japan said, "Fisheries under MSC assessment include mackerel in Norway and flounder in Alaska, which are mostly exported to Japan. Acquisition of certifications will increase the number of MSC products in Japan."


Note: The same fishery products sold by different retail companies are counted as other products.

http://www.msc.org/
http://www.msc.org/newsroom/press_releases/archive-2008/japanese-msc-products-reach-100
- Kyoto Fishermen Seeking Eco-Labels for Flounders, Snow Crabs (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1374-e
- First MSC-Labeled Seafood Appears on Japanese Market (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1480-e

Posted: 2008/09/28 10:22:03 AM
Japanese version

TAG Food/Water , NGO/Citizen