FAO GLOBEFISH talks value of seafood sustainability and traceability in Shanghai
The International Seminar on Sustainable Seafood Value Chain: Traceability, will take place from 28–30 November 2018 in Shanghai, China and will be comprised of a two-day seminar and a one-day field visit. Traceability, on international or national levels, is especially important given recent changes in legislative requirements of the major international markets for seafood that require identification of legally caught fish. The event is jointly organized with FAO’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Department and Shanghai Ocean University and will focus on engaging participants in a global dialogue on seafood traceability.
Representatives from ten countries, non-governmental organizations and intergovernmental initiatives with ongoing activities in seafood traceability will be invited to elaborate on the current situation in seafood traceability.
The seminar will address a variety of topics pertinent to the sustainable seafood value chain, including: current systems and principles of a good traceability system; blockchain and seafood traceability; current situation and constraints in seafood traceability in countries such as the United States, the Republic of Korea, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Spain, Thailand, Tanzania, Oman, China and Chile. The seminar will be an invaluable opportunity for international experts to discuss challenges and exchange expertise on seafood traceability on both policy and practical levels.
GLOBEFISH will contribute to the discussions with its expertise in the field of sustainability in the fisheries sector on the first day of the event, Wednesday 28 November. Mr John Ryder, FIAM Head, will provide an inaugural speech and later lead the discussion on international trade and markets for fisheries and aquaculture products. Moreover, Ms Nada Bougouss, Market Analyst for Globefish, will present “FAO work on seafood traceability”, which will be followed by a discussion on development and implementation of the voluntary guidelines on Catch Documentation Schemes given by Mr Nianjun Shen, Fishery Industry Officer, FAO.
Traceability 101: Why is seafood traceability so important?
Fisheries and aquaculture, as a food production industry, have been advancing rapidly over the last decades in both production and trade. Fish has become the most internationally traded food product with some 37 percent by volume traded internationally.
Traceability simply means the ability to fully trace a product from the point of sale back to its point of origin, with information available about all movements in between. Given that the seafood industry is becoming more globalized, consumers are increasingly interested in knowing exactly where their fish is coming from.“
According to Audun Lem, Deputy-Director of FAO’s Fisheries and Aquaculture Department, traceability is important for two main reasons. “The first is related to quality and safety issues. If we know the origin of the fish, we can trace it back across the entire value chain to when it was first caught or farmed and ensure that in every stage proper hygiene and safety standards were followed. The second important aspect of traceability is to ensure legality – making certain that the fish were fished within agreed quotas, by licensed fishermen and women in keeping with rules and regulations and that all importers and exporters were licensed and followed national and international rules and regulations in delivering the fish to the end consumer.”
Date and venue: 28–30 November 2018, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai, China
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Related publications: Seafood traceability for fisheries compliance