Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) announced today the expansion of its work to improve the sustainability of tuna and shrimp production in Asia, made possible with funding from the Walmart Foundation. SFP is dedicated to rebuilding depleted fish stocks and reducing the environmental and social impacts of fishing and fish farming.
“There is currently great momentum around efforts to improve the sustainability of tuna fisheries. With the continued support of the Walmart Foundation, we have an exciting opportunity to build on that by accelerating efforts to protect vulnerable marine life and resources by providing management tools to seafood producers,” said SFP’s Global Markets Director Kathryn Novak.
Ultimately, SFP aims to increase the volume of fish coming from fishery improvement projects (FIPs) and certified fisheries that supply fresh, frozen, and canned tuna. By expanding current work with the existing Global Fresh and Frozen Tuna Supply Chain Roundtable (SR) and retail and food service partners, SFP can:
- Strengthen efforts to coordinate and mobilize the supply chain for fresh and frozen tuna to advance the overall sustainability of the fisheries,
- Increase observer coverage on tuna fishing vessels, and
- Help reduce the incidental catch of seabirds, sharks, turtles, and other vulnerable marine life.
In the shrimp sector, this new funding will help SFP scale its work to improve the livelihoods of shrimp farmers and reduce negative impacts of shrimp disease outbreaks, which cost farmers and the industry hundreds of millions of dollars and require increased use of antibiotics. Because investment in solutions remains low, and small-scale farmers are particularly vulnerable, SFP will expand its efforts to develop and implement innovative, coordinated disease management applications and water quality management tools by:
- Bringing on more farmers in both Thailand and Indonesia,
- Increasing pre-competitive collaboration on sustainability practices among international shrimp buyers.
- Strengthening tools and infrastructure to support the establishment of aquaculture improvement projects, and
- Increasing the adoption of zonal management strategies for aquaculture in those countries, which requires the industry to explicitly recognize that one seafood farm can have an adverse impact on another if they are in close enough proximity to each other or connected through shared supply chains.
“Our goal is to educate producer organizations through the delivery of evidence-based tools that will increase the adoption of zonal management in national policies, eventually covering all aquaculture production in Thailand and Indonesia,” said SFP’s Aquaculture Director Anton Immink.
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About SFP:
Founded in 2006, the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Foundation – known as Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) – is a nonprofit organization dedicated to rebuilding depleted fish stocks and reducing the environmental and social impacts of fishing and fish farming by engaging fishery stakeholders (communities, NGOs, government, etc.) and seafood businesses in every part of the supply chain. The organization works to improve fisheries through fishery improvement projects (FIPs) and aquaculture improvement projects (AIPs), which are multi-stakeholder bodies that seek to advance the sustainability of fishing and fish-farming operations. SFP also supports Supply Chain Roundtables (SRs), which allow seafood suppliers to work in a pre-competitive environment to promote improvement throughout the supply chain. Visit us at www.sustainablefish.org.
About Philanthropy at Walmart:
Walmart.org represents the philanthropic efforts of Walmart and the Walmart Foundation. By leaning in where the business has unique strengths, Walmart.org works to tackle key social issues and collaborate with others to spark long-lasting systemic change. Walmart has stores in 27 countries, employs more than 2 million associates and does business with thousands of suppliers who, in turn, employ millions of people. Walmart.org is helping people live better by supporting programs that work to accelerate upward job mobility for frontline workers, address hunger and make healthier, more sustainably grown food a reality, and build strong communities where Walmart operates. To learn more, visit www.walmart.org or connect on Twitter @Walmartorg.