Certification to the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) Chain of Custody Standard enables you to demonstrate to costumers that your seafood originates from an MSC certified sustainable fishery.

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Seafood is the world’s most important renewable food source. Healthy oceans are essential for thriving marine ecosystems, livelihoods and economies around the world. Our oceans are under more pressure than ever from human and environmental impacts. With growing consumer concern about what we eat in terms of product origin, environmental impact and nutritional value, increased focus is placed on sustainability in the fishing sector. 

What is the MSC Chain of Custody standard? 

The MSC Chain of Custody Standard applies to any market player (individual organisations or groups) with ownership of the product or where the seafood product is transformed or repacked, including wholesalers, processors, retailers, caterers and traders. It guarantees that any product bearing the MSC eco-label is from a certified sustainable fishery. Each member of the supply chain that claims ownership of the product or transforms the product must be certified up to the point of the product entering its final, consumer-ready packaging. 

What are the benefits? 

Certification to the MSC Chain of Custody Standard enables your organisation to: 

• Demonstrate to your customers that your products originate from a sustainable fishery.
• Meet consumer demand for product sourcing information.
• Ensure a sustainable and secure food chain.
• Build consumer trust. 
• Support the positioning of your product with the eco-label.
• Meet retail demand for verification of sustainably sourced products.
• Trade with leading retailers and retail chains that require MSC certification.

Use of the MSC eco-label on seafood products is only permitted where there has been an independent verification against the MSC Chain of Custody Standard and where the company has signed a logo licensing agreement with Marine Stewardship Council International. 

How can we help you? 

DNV - Business Assurance is a certification body accredited to assess individual organisations and groups against the MSC Chain of Custody Standard and issue certificates.  To evaluate the integrity of the chain of custody for relevant fish and fish products and their origin from an MSC certified fishery, DNV - Business Assurance assesses processes, evaluates related records, and reconciles product quantity. 

How can I prepare for certification? 

• Contact DNV - Business Assurance to get more information on the certification scheme.
• Give clear responsibility for progress to a person within your organisation.
• Make sure you have a clear purpose and understanding of what you want to accomplish through the certification process.
• Decide what should be certified in terms of the certified fish you source and the particular products/product groups originating from these inputs. 
• Ensure the support and input of relevant supply chain actors. The certification process will require documentation on the supply chain to verify that the product originates from an MSC certified fishery. 

What is the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)? 

The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is an independent, global, non-profit organisation. It was first set up as a joint effort to solve the problem of over-fishing by Unilever and the WWF in 1997. It became independent in 1999. The organizations mission is to use their ecolabel and fishery certification programme to contribute to the health of the world’s oceans by recognizing and rewarding sustainable fishing practices, influencing the choices people make when buying seafood, and working with partners to transform the seafood market to a sustainable basis.