Despite the acute political situation in 2018, which left Nicaragua on its knees both socially and economically, the resilient fishing communities together with the government continued to prioritize the preservation of the spiny lobster, and to drive it towards Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification with the active support of WWF and its corporate partners in the US.
Last month, The Bahamas’ spiny lobster fishery became the first Caribbean fishery to achieve Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification, meeting the leading environmental standard for wild-caught seafood.
The Bahamas certification was a major milestone and charts a path for other spiny lobster fisheries exporting product around the world. Building on this success, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has partnered with Red Lobster, the world’s largest seafood restaurant company and largest restaurant purchaser of seafood, to help improve the environmental sustainability of spiny lobster fisheries in Honduras, Nicaragua, Belize and Brazil
On August 7, 2018, The Bahamas’ spiny lobster fishery became the first Caribbean fishery to earn certification from the Marine Stewardship Council, the leading global standard for wild-caught seafood environmental performance.
Since 2009, World Wildlife Fund and The Nature Conservancy have collaborated with The Bahamas Marine Exporters Association, Bahamas Department of Marine Resources and fishermen to ensure the health of the spiny lobster stock, reduce the impact of fishing on the marine environment, and improve the overall management of the fishery.
