I&J Commits to Sustainability

Irvin & Johnson Ltd, South Africa's largest hake trawl fishing company, has committed that it would only sell sustainably harvested fish and fish products produced from sustainable fisheries by December 2015.

The details of the commitment are substantially that by December 2015, I&J would only sell fish -

• wild harvested from MSC certified fisheries; or
• that is on the WWF-SASSI green list; or
• that is certified by the newly established Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC); or
• that the WWF has confirmed is on a time-bound recovery plan or subject to a by-catch management plan.

Read Sue Blaine's Business Day article on the subject here.

If one however considers I&J's major SA fish production areas, being trawled hake, soles, farmed abalone, squids and west coast rock lobsters, most of the company's products would already comply. The notable exceptions would be the sole fishery and farmed abalone which are both presently listed orange by SASSI, although sole is part of the MSC certified hake inshore trawl catch.