High Liner Foods Incorporated, a leading North American value-added frozen seafood company, announced on February 6 that it has achieved 99% of its goal to procure all seafood from “certified sustainable or responsible” fisheries and aquaculture sources. The Lunenberg, Nova Scotia, Canada-headquartered company made a pledge in November 2010 to reach this goal by the end of 2013.
“Three years ago, we set an ambitious goal that fundamentally changed the way we do business, and I’m very proud that we’ve achieved 99% of that goal,” said Henry Demone, chief executive officer of High Liner Foods.
Of the eight major species of fish and shellfish that High Liner Foods purchases, it has achieved 100% of its goal for Atlantic cod, haddock, pollock, sole/flounder, Pacific cod and Pacific salmon. The company has reached 98% of its commitment for tilapia and 91% for shrimp. Combined, those species totaled 196 million pounds of product purchased in 2013. Among the species that don’t currently meet High Liner’s sustainability criteria are various kinds of squid, ocean perch and small wild shrimp.
The 99% achievement figure does not include American Pride Seafoods LLC, which High Liner Foods acquired in October 2013, and will be integrating into its operations in 2014.
High Liner has published a progress report documenting some of the major fishery improvement projects it has participated in, along with areas of the business where its sustainability focus is expanding, such as packaging, energy efficiency, carbon footprint and social responsibility. The report, along with a video and infographic, can be accessed by visiting www.highlinersustainability.com.
“Together, with the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership and others within the NGO community, we have assumed a leadership role in substantial fishery and aquaculture improvements around the world,” said Bill DiMento, Highliner’s corporate director of sustainability. “From day one, our efforts have been focused on continuous improvements, and that commitment will continue.”
High Liner Foods’ ongoing commitment is that 100% of wild-caught or farmed products must meet the following criteria:
- They come from fisheries and aquaculture farms certified as sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s (GAA) Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) program, or the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC); or
- Those fisheries and farms not certified as sustainable must be on a clear, defined path actively working toward certification and capable of documenting measurable improvements. High Liner Foods will continue to collaborate with the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership to achieve these objectives.
