A summary of hot news items in sustainability – for seafood purchasers and industry.

The following information is a rundown of key sustainability news items for the month

of October.

------First up, the number of retailers committed to sustainable seafood keeps on growing:

Target announced that it will only sell sustainable and traceable seafood by 2015.

And the first African retailer – Pick n Pay –- has made a similar commitment. Pick

n Pay is South Africa’s second largest retailer.

And finally, the infamous Pike Place Market in Seattle will be dropping their iconic mascot

– the monkfish – along with other unsustainable species as a part of their new policy to source

only sustainable seafood.

------Next up – Russia made some headlines in seafood sustainability this month:

The World Wildlife Fund - and Fisheries Holding Karat have agreed to develop educational programs

on sustainable fisheries.

The aim is to increase knowledge amongst fishing crew members and fishing companies of sustainable

fisheries and the requirements for environmental certification according to the MSC.

And, McDonalds is considering the launch of a Pollock processing factory in Russia. The

factory would produce filet-of-fish sandwiches out of Alaska Pollock sourced from MSC-Certified

fisheries in the Sea of Okhotsk and the Bering Sea. This is contingent on the Russian fisheries

obtaining the MSC eco-label.

And in Germany, two supermarket chains have launched campaigns to promote sustainable

seafood:

Kaufland is supporting traditional tonguesole fishing in Gambia. For every kg of MSC certified

fish sold during the 4 week campaign, 50 euro cents will be donated to the African fishery

to help improve the situation of fishermen in Gambia who hope to be certified against

the MSC standard.

And, EDEKA supermarkets – is working with MSC on a campaign that features high impact

point-of-sale materials to promote MSC products. This is the first joint-MSC in-store supermarket

campaign that encourages shoppers to look for the eco-label.

------Next up,

The California Academy of Sciences is showcasing Safeway's leadership in seafood sustainability

as part of the Academy's "Science in Action" video exhibit. The video highlights innovative

ways that researchers, retailers and environmental groups are harvesting seafood without jeopardizing

the health of the ecosystems from which it was caught.

And, a study conducted by the University of British Columbia found that Peru ranks first

in terms of sustainable fisheries. Peru’s program includes individual catch quotas,

a GPS ship tracking system and inspectors at every factory.

------And finally, a quick update on the Marine Stewardship Council:

Big Y – one of the largest supermarket chains in New England recently obtained MSC Chain

of Custody Certification.

The Zhangzidao Scallop fishery has become the first Chinese fishery to enter full assessment

for MSC certification. The fishery uses diving and dredging methods to produce 60,000 metric

of Yesso Scallops each year.

And finally, the Fogo Island coldwater Shrimp off the coast of Newfoundland has obtained

MSC certification.

------Thank you for joining me for The Tradex Foods

"3-Minute Sustainability Recap" This is Ryan McKay - “BUY SMART” and “EAT

MORE SEAFOOD”