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Embedding Sustainable Seafood Programs in the Retail Sector for the Long Haul June 6 th , 2017 1:30 – 2:45
Embedding Sustainable Seafood Programs
in the Retail Sector for the Long Haul
June 6th, 2017 1:30 – 2:45
How we got here…
1990s – mounting
concern re the state of global
fisheries
1997 - ENGOs establish market
oriented programs
Consumer education
species focussed
campaigns
ENGOs collaborate to
establish “Common Vision for
Sustainable Seafood”
ENGO/retailers Partnerships developed
We’re on a good path…
The sustainable seafood movement has made a difference!
Collaboration among businesses, marine conservation organizations, certification bodies, and foundations
Many examples of shared progress in certification, traceability and improvements projects
Always more to do…..
Why we’re here today….
To review progress to date with sustainable seafood procurement in the retail sector
To highlight successes and challenges
To identify best practices
To profile new tools, systems, and collaborations that can improve the
efficiency of sustainable seafood programs
We welcome your input re: What’s working well
Current challenges
Ways to improve efficiency and embed
seafood programs for the long haul
Moderator: Bill Wareham
Panelists:
Katie Miller
Phil Gibson
Kurtis Hayne
Sam Grimley
Claire Li Loong
Our Panel
ClientEarth ClientEarth and the Oceans
Katie Miller
SeaWeb Summit, Seattle
June 2017
Credit: Tiago Fioreze
It began in
2011…
A voluntary approach –
vision for sustainability
Aims
• Promote responsible and sustainable fish and
seafood consumption
• Support a wide range of responsibly sourced
seafood in the UK market
• Commit to the SSC codes
• Influence changes in policy
• Build alliances
• Inform the public debate on seafood
Sourcing Code
• General good practice
• Risk assessment / audit
• Engage/ improve
In the UK, only two types
of claim are now used:
sustainability
and/or
responsibility
http://tinyurl.com/q4cgpc5
Governance & ToR
Lessons learned
• The process is not easy
• It takes time
• Commitment from the top is key, as is
continuity in personnel
• Every voice must be heard, every
concern must be addressed
• Ownership creates change
• Huge impact on the supply chain
Summary
• The SSC codes are a tool for any
seafood supply chain
• A voluntary approach can complement
and enhance legislation
• The SSC model works. Collaboration
can create huge investment into a
sustainable future
[Video]
Our success
www.sustainableseafoodcoalition.org
Katie Miller
Project lead, sustainable seafood
Thank you!
Retailer Perspective
Resiliensea Group, Inc • resilienea.com
Seafood Sustainability for the Long Haul
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
Agenda
• Background
• What the projects have been
• What the program successes have been
• What the continued challenges are
• Where do we go from here
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
Background
• Personal History
• Safeway experience
• Post-Safeway experience
• Commitment to improvement in industry practices
• On-going programs
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
The Projects
• Overall Safeway Corporate Responsibility Commitment
• Seafood’s Role in Safeway’s CSR
• What the approach to program development was
• How it was implemented
• What the current progress is
• How the Safeway experience helped other programs
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
Program Results
• Safeway
• Policy announcement in 2010
• National recognition
• Annual progress
• Recent developments
• Post Safeway
• Raley’s
• Other retailers
• Distributors & Manufacturers
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
Challenges
• Product availability
• Opaque supply sources
• Consumer apathy & confusion
• Retailer Knowledge
• Labor & training issues
• Media myths
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
The Promise for the Future
• Meeting of objectives – goal sharing
• Increasing supply availability
• Greater transparency
• Improved regulatory environment
• Better cooperation
Resiliensea Group, Inc. • resiliensea.com
Takeaways
• 20 years of increasing awareness and action
• Wider availability of responsibly sourced product
• Long-range commitments to improve
• Better cooperation of industry players
• Real improvement on the ground
• New tools to track and quantify progress
THANK YOU!
EMBEDDING SUSTAINABLE SEAFOOD PROGRAMS IN THE RETAIL SECTOR
FOR THE LONG HAUL
-Kurtis Hayne Market Analyst, SeaChoice
SeaChoice History
• Founded in 2006 by five Canadian ENGOs
• Have worked with major retailers to create and work through robust sustainable seafood commitments
• Our retailers in have been very successful in these commitments
Results of SeaChoice’s retailer work…
• Large reduction in Red and Unranked seafood during partnerships
Retailer #1 Retailer #2
Retailer #3
INDEPENDENT
Overall Progress Made by Retailers?
• Some retailers have set aspirational commitments and give regular status updates
• Others have no set commitments or do not give regular status updates on progress
• This, along with the variety of approaches makes it difficult to gauge overall progress
Sustainability of Canadian Seafood
-”Taking Stock”, SeaChoice (2016)
Seafood Watch ranking of seafood consumed in Canada
What has Worked…
1) Every major Canadian retailer has a sustainable seafood policy
2) We have seen progress forward in these sustainable seafood policies
3) To date corporate leadership have prioritized the importance of sustainable seafood programs
What needs work…
1) We have not seen large expansion of seafood policies since their initiation
2) Though progress has been made it is difficult to quantify due to lack of transparency
3) Seafood staff transition can mean a shift in prioritization of sustainable seafood
Ongoing Retailer Work…
• As incremental gains are made the ROI (sustainability gains) for our capacity is diminishing
• Capacity needed to operate these partnerships has remained similar due to:
– Data Collection
– Responding to new issues
– Regular meetings, etc.
• This makes it difficult to continue to grow programs with fixed NGO resources
How do we continue and elevate performance of commitments?
1) Find efficiencies and reduce workload
2) Find ways of letting the supply chain “own” more of the work
Finding Efficiencies
• Data Collection: there is work underway to better facilitate data collection by the NGO community
Finding Efficiencies
• Specialization of NGO Groups:
– Until now, many NGO partnerships have tried to satisfy all elements of a policy
– NGOs are becoming leaders in certain aspects of sustainable seafood- tuna, FIPs, traceability, human rights
– There has also been an emergence of service providers
Retailer Ownership of Seafood Policies
• Certain functions of commitments could be taken on by companies directly
– Data Collection
– Supplier Outreach
– On-water reform initiatives
Difficulties in creating retailer Ownership
• Cost for retailers on fixed and small margins
• Steep learning curve for new staff
• Uncertainty around consumer demand
• Supply-chain complexity around data consolidation
Is corporate ownership of a seafood policy possible?
Benefits of Retailer Ownership?
• Program embedded and not as vulnerable to change in staff
• Ownership may facilitate “natural” broadening of seafood policies
• Frees up NGO capacity to continue to tackle emerging or continuing issues
Finding the balance
• Goal is to build lasting, robust commitments which make efficient use of resources
-Kurtis Hayne Market Analyst, SeaChoice
Thank You!
www.SeaChoice.org Kurtis Hayne, Market Analyst [email protected]
Continuing Buyer Engagement in the Sustainable Seafood Movement
Sam Grimley
Sustainable Fisheries Partnership
What SFP does • SFP works with seafood major buyers and their suppliers to help improve the
sustainability of fisheries and farms they were already sourcing from. – Focusing improvement projects on reducing bycatch, improving stock levels,
improving working conditions for producers, and encouraging the industry to take charge of sustainable seafood production
• Strategic guidance, technical assistance to seafood suppliers and producers:
– Help harvesters change practices to meet specific buyer demands – Help fishers and local processors inform decision-making bodies on management
and conservation options
• Advise major retailers, food service on sustainability strategies and
responsible procurement policies. • Develop information systems so buyers and suppliers can measure and
manage their sustainability commitments
SFP Partners
What is a ‘partner’?
• Develop a public policy in regards to the sustainability of seafood sourcing.
• Adopt a model of continuous improvement.
• Measure and monitor progress towards sustainability goal.
• Agree to engage supply chains in improving the sustainability of seafood sources.
How has it been going? • Sustainable seafood movement has been active for over 20 years
• Many European and North American retailers were early adopters
of sustainability commitments; many now close to reaching goals
• Sustainability programs expanding to other markets (ex. Spain, Indonesia, China, etc.), and to include other segments of the supply chain
• Movement has established several key tools for supporting sustainability (ex. Certifications and ratings, public awareness campaigns, industry-led improvement projects)
• Some seafood sectors have responded well (ex. Number of FIPs/AIPs) and demonstrate the movement’s success (ex. whitefish, cold water shrimp)
What has been working? • Robust sustainability commitments and policies from major buyers
• Seeking certifications (MSC, ASC, GAA, etc.)
• Transparent reporting (ex. Public disclosure projects, documentation of
FIP/AIP progress, etc.)
• Informing the consumer (Public-facing programs, such as Monterey Bay Seafood Watch, Ocean Wise)
• Industry engagement and education; making the “business case” for sustainability
• Encouraging supply chains to lead FIPs/AIPs
• Pre-competitive efforts (ex. Supply Chain Roundtables, ISSF, Sea Pact, etc.) – Not just for industry; NGOs as well - Conservation Alliance for Seafood Solutions
What is next?
• Retailers with established sustainability programs continue to evolve – Expand engagement on social issues – Continued supplier engagement – Increased transparency – Provide lessons learned to emerging markets
• Some seafood sectors are largely untouched when it comes to sustainability (ex. Octopus/squid, snapper/grouper)
• Industry sees these challenges as pre-competitive – outside of “normal” business – the rising tide that lifts all boats
What can we do? • Retailers continue with their efforts, but expand collaboration
– Recognize that as NGOs, we may have different methods, but have a shared end goal
• Increase policy engagement with governments
• Engage seafood sectors that are in need of the most improvements
– May fall outside existing supply chains for some buyers, but can provide blueprints for success
– Continue to engage supply chains
Thank you! Questions?
Embedding Sustainable Seafood Programs in the Retail Sector for the Long Haul Seaweb Seafood Summit Claire Li Loong 6 June 2017 Ocean Wise Account Representative
Intro to Ocean Wise
91%
What has worked
• Labeling using retail product codes
• Staff training
• Reference materials for staff
• Consumer education
• Auditing
Labeling: Product codes
• Ocean Wise incorporated into the product code minimizes labeling mistakes from staff
Staff Education: In-person manager training, webinars, online training, custom training modules
Reference Materials for Staff
• FAQ for employees
• Cheat sheets
Consumer Education
• Brochures and posters • Videos • Labels inside display
case, shelf talkers and stickers on package
Auditing
• Secret shoppers • Spot checks by managers • NGO Audits
Challenges
• Labeling– technological limitations
• Data collection and cooperation of suppliers
• Popular unsustainable seafood items
• Seafood with no sustainable alternatives
• Unassessed seafood in ethnic markets
Challenges: Labeling and technological limitations
• Inability of some retailers to include Ocean Wise code in product codes and labels
• Overcoming challenge: Label price list or supplier invoice
CHAR ARCTIC FLT S/ON PBO MED
BASA FLT 6/8 OZ IQF RETAIL
CLAM MANILA N/SHELL 5 LB BAG
COD LING WHL H/OF LL FAS
SHRIMP 26/30 RAW P&D TLON IQF POI
Challenges: Data collection
• Need key data elements to make recommendations
• Suppliers are not always Ocean Wise partners
• Overcoming challenge: Direct introductions to key contacts, partnering with suppliers, collaborating with other NGOs
Challenges: Popular unsustainable seafood items
• Retailers reluctant to switch out seafood items that sell e.g. shrimp, Atlantic salmon
• Overcoming challenge: Add sustainable option without removing unsustainable choice or switch the item out and publicize the sustainable move – measure sales difference.
Challenges: Seafood with no sustainable alternatives
• CDN Lobster, imported crabmeat etc. have no viable alternatives
• Overcoming challenge: rely on consumer demand for sustainable seafood and consumer education
Challenges: Unassessed seafood in ethnic markets
• Seafood that has no recommendation
• Overcoming challenge: Identify popular unassessed seafood for future possible assessments e.g. sea cucumber
Thank you!
@ocean_wise @ocean_wise @ocean_wise oceanwise.ca
