Does BAP certification help promote sustainable aquaculture?
By Gina-Marie Cheeseman for Global Warming is Real
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| Shellfishermen set up racks to grow oysters from seed in Ninigret Pond. Sea Grant RI |
The site contains information on the BAP certification program, aquaculture, seafood recipes, and the benefits of eating seafood. It includes a “how to page” with information for BAP retail and food service partners. GSA will also launch a social media campaign called “Are You Aqua Cultured?” to encourage consumers to educate themselves about farmed seafood.
Is the BAP Label Reliable?
What exactly is certification? According to the UN, it is a process “by which a third party gives written
assurance that a product, process or service conforms with certain
standards.” BAP defines its certification program addresses the “four key
areas of sustainability—environmental, social, food safety, and animal health
and welfare—at each step of the aquaculture production chain.”
More and more people in the U.S. are swapping seafood for meat. A study by Changing Tastes found that seafood is the preferred choice of Americans who want to eat less meat. Researchers studied 3,000 adult consumers and 400 purchasing decision-makers in food service.
They discovered that nearly
one-third of Americans are “substantially” interested in eating less meat, and
39 percent want to substitute meat with seafood. Researchers also found that
eco-labels promoting responsible seafood production often influence Americans
to pick one product or brand over another.
Many of us want sustainable seafood, and many of us have favorable views of the BAP label. Forty-six percent of Americans have favorable views of retail channels that display the BAP labels, while 64 percent would choose products with the BAP label.
Fifty-six percent of food
service operators have complimentary views of the BAP label. Are American
consumers and food service operators correct in placing so much confidence in
the BAP label?
Food Print, a project of the GRACE Communications Foundation, has mixed reviews of the BAP label. It acknowledges that the BAP label “covers important issues like stocking densities and tracking.”
However, it points out that BAP certification “does not address many
major fish feed issues, does not prohibit drug use, and does not address the most
egregious labor practices.”
An Alternative to Labels?
Food Print ranks Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program as the top way to pick sustainable seafood.
It is not a label appearing on the product but a grading system that looks at
factors such as overfishing, bycatch, impact on food webs, and habitat
disturbance. It ranks fish into three categories: best choice, good
alternative, and avoid. The program focuses on specific regions and catch
methods.
Although the Seafood Watch program is not as handy as looking for a certification label, it is more reliable. For example, when I enter salmon into the program’s system, it recommends wild-caught and gives me tips on determining if it’s imported or farmed.
I learned from the recommendations
that all Atlantic salmon is farmed and all wild-caught salmon is from the
Pacific Ocean and adjacent waters. With specific salmon to avoid, I feel confident
I can go into a grocery store and buy sustainable salmon.
