Alaska Seafood. Responsible and Certified.
Alaska is a big, rugged, pristine state with an abundance of wildlife. There are only 733,000 people in the entire state, and fishing and processing employs more than 60,000 people – more people than any other industry in Alaska. For Alaskans, nothing is more important than protecting this ecosystem to ensure that it’s around for future generations.
One of the reasons that Alaska became a state was to protect the fish for the long haul. This is why sustainability was written into its constitution when Alaska became a state back in 1959. Today, it remains the only state to have this type of strict conservation language in its constitution. Long before certification and eco-labels became table stakes, Alaska prioritized sustainability by putting it into law.
Wild-caught seafood is one of Alaska’s most precious resources, and the state goes to great lengths to ensure its continued abundance. Five main pillars uphold Alaska seafood’s sustainability:
FISHERIES MANAGEMENT: Alaska serves as a worldwide leader and sets the gold standard for fisheries management.
FAMILIES & COMMUNITIES: Alaska’s fishing families are the heart and soul of Alaska’s seafood industry, handing down responsible fishing practices from generation to generation.
RESOURCE UTILIZATION: Alaska strives to let no part of the seafood harvest go to waste, using leftover materials to create such products as collagen, fish oil, fishmeal, etc.
SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY: Alaska has a comprehensive suite of laws and regulations for a safe and fair working environment for all.
THIRD-PARTY CERTIFICATION: Alaska’s fisheries are certified by both the Responsible Fisheries Management (RFM) program and the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), offering choices for the marketplace.
Choice With Responsible Fisheries Management (RFM)
It is widely acknowledged that healthy competition drives innovation and value. Robust and flexible markets rely intrinsically on the ability to choose between multiple options to be effective and efficient. Just like there are options with aquaculture certification programs, creating a constructive competitive environment, the same must go for wild-capture fisheries. With RFM, suppliers and retailers get to have a choice in wild-capture fisheries certification. This was the main driver behind Alaska Seafood and Pacific Whiting applying for and obtaining RFM certification. The Gulf of Mexico shrimp fishery is going through the RFM assessment process as well, and an announcement about this will likely be made this winter.
What Makes RFM Unique among Wild-Capture Certifications
- ORIGIN FIRST: RFM Chain of Custody certification preserves the story of the fish so that it’s traceable through the supply chain back to its point of origin. RFM is the only program that includes origin on every pack logo.
- BENCHMARKED AND TRUSTED: RFM was the first certification program to be benchmarked by the rigorous Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI) in 2016. RFM standards are based on the United Nations’ FAO standards, so you can trust that they’re vetted, stable and comprehensive.
- EXCEPTIONAL RELIABILITY: Unlike other seafood certification programs, RFM-certified fisheries are always well managed, with no allowance for serious deviations. Sound governance ensures against special-interest influence, meaning that RFM certification is always impartial.
- NO LOGO FEES EVER: While others are focused on gaining financial success through logo license fees, as a nonprofit, RFM is focused solely on offering a rigorous program for fisheries certification. There are no logo fees ever, because the goal is to make certified-sustainable and traceable seafood accessible to all.
- BUILT ON THE WATER: The RFM program originated with experts who have dedicated their lives and livelihoods to wild-capture sustainable fisheries. They are fishery managers, scientists and conservationists who are specialists in fishery issues. So when you buy seafood from RFM-certified fisheries, you’re not just doing good for your business, you’re also working with a program that you can trust.
To learn more or sign up for RFM Chain of Custody, go to rfmcertification.org.