World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Amyris, a leading synthetic biology company, announced a new three-year partnership aimed at leveraging science to protect ocean biodiversity with an initial focus on shark populations. This new partnership will support WWF’s global efforts to reverse the downward trends that threaten biodiversity and human well-being by repairing, restoring, and protecting the oceans.
World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and the Walmart Foundation are announcing the launch of a new eighteen-month collaboration to scale more sustainable and responsible seafood transformation by developing and piloting a holistic place-based approach. The project aims at improving several key seafood practices within a specific geography.
The initiative will drive current seafood industry and conservation efforts toward a more comprehensive seascape jurisdictional approach to sustainable seafood that utilizes global market solutions and innovative financing strategies to ensure greater, equitable outcomes for our oceans and its coastal communities.
The Science Based Targets Network (SBTN) Ocean Hub officially launched its first workstream: Seafood Value Chains. World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Conservation International (CI) will co-lead the workstream to help companies adopt a roadmap for integrated action on nature and climate.
The announcement came as world leaders were meeting in Lisbon, Portugal, for the United Nations Oceans Conference, focused on “Scaling up Ocean Action Based on Science and Innovation for the Implementation of Goal 14: Stocktaking, Partnerships, and Solutions.”
Royal Caribbean Group (RCL) announced its new commitment to the next phase of its ongoing partnership with World Wildlife Fund (WWF) for guidance and counsel in establishing bold environmental goals and sustainable business practices.
“Healthy, sustainable oceans are paramount to our mission of delivering the best vacations responsibly,” said Royal Caribbean Group CEO Jason Liberty. “Our partnership with WWF encapsulates our belief in continuous improvement and our commitment to advancing our environmental, social and governance (ESG) work. The support and assistance of WWF will be invaluable to realizing this mission as we work to set and achieve our sustainability goals.”
The Peru Mahi Alliance (PMA), a pre-competitive partnership of 13 Peruvian mahi mahi companies, will be launched officially on March 14th at the Seafood Expo North America (SENA) in Boston, with the presence of major U.S. buyer companies. PMA represents almost 80% of Peru’s mahi mahi exports to the US and is committed to advancing the Peru mahi mahi Fishery Improvement Project (FIP) through activity implementation, political advocacy efforts, and funding.
Seafood buyers can now access the WWF Endangered Seafood Guide to at-risk freshwater and marine species in seafood procurement in four different languages. In addition to the original English version, Spanish, Japanese, and Chinese editions are available for free to download. The goal is to help global seafood industry identify and remove problematic species from their supply chains.
From his port city of Nha Trang in Vietnam on the South China Sea, we interviewed Stephen Reiss Fisher, Sustainability Director at Sea Delight on the value of joining the sustainability movement, supporting fisheries in transition, and what trends he is seeing from his work at the heart of global seafood supply chain. In 2009, Sea Delight made a commitment to sustainability and created a public company-wide policy. As part of that, Sea Delight continues to assess its seafood purchases again some of the most robust certifications like the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC). The company is also supporting fisheries on their journey toward sustainability by sourcing products from over a dozen Fishery Improvement Projects (FIPs), including Peru and Ecuador mahi-mahi and Vietnam Handline Tuna FIPs.
Sysco recently released its 2021 corporate social responsibility report highlighting progress against its 2025 seafood sustainability commitment announced earlier this year in partnership with World Wildlife Fund (WWF). The report confirms that the company is already making important progress in meeting the new commitment, after expanding its seafood sustainability program earlier this year to include Sysco US and Canada Broadline, and US Specialty company lines of business. This report was also an occasion for Sysco to unveil its brand-new science-based climate change goals.
Building on a decade-long partnership with WWF to drive more sustainable seafood sourcing, Kroger is restating their commitment to increasing seafood sustainability by launching a new, more comprehensive Seafood Sustainability Policy. As the nation’s largest grocer and a leading purchaser of seafood, Kroger’s new policy has the potential to drive even greater impact on wild-caught and farmed seafood systems.
Building on progress achieved on its 2020 seafood sustainability goals, Kroger reaffirms their leadership in the sector by extending commitments to source more sustainable and responsible seafood, including shelf-stable tuna. Their aspiration is to source 100% of the seafood in their fresh and frozen departments from fisheries and farms.
Seafood is one of the most globally traded food commodities, and demand for it continues to rise. As a result, levels of fishing in many areas of the world are becoming increasingly unsustainable, and the list of endangered marine and freshwater species grows ever longer. Companies are increasingly willing to work with governments and conservation groups to shift the seafood market toward more sustainable and responsible sourcing. At the same time, though, some companies have yet to ban endangered species from their supply chains—a bare minimum requirement on the path to sustainability.
