Sea change

Sainsbury’s is wielding its weight as Britain’s biggest fishmonger – to persuade an industry to change its ways, and its shoppers to buy more sustainably. Fiona Wheatley reports.

A quick exercise: write down ten typical British foods as fast as you can. Your list will probably include beloved stereotypes like roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, or the full English breakfast. Guaranteed to be in the mix somewhere will be one of our favourite national dishes – cod and chips.

Cod has had iconic status here for decades with more than 120,000 tonnes of it consumed in 2004 alone. But after years of campaigning by green groups, backed up by scientific research showing dwindling stocks, some consumers are beginning to question their choice.

As Britain’s largest fishmonger, Sainsbury’s recognises its key role in helping to change shoppers’ tastes in the name of more sustainable fishing – both through what we sell, and the messages we give.

For example, we’re developing new recipes to inspire customers to try something different from cod, with an emphasis on nutritional health and sustainability. We’re also training fish counter staff to give advice on seasonal seafood and inform customers of Sainsbury’s commitment to protect fish stocks and the marine environment. Knowing that some consumers will simply always love cod, though, we led the way in introducing the first ever cod fillets bearing the Marine Stewardship Council’s (MSC) blue label – the industry benchmark for well-managed fisheries.

Off the menu

But we’re well aware that over-fishing is not confined to cod, so back in February we made a pledge to stop selling endangered fish altogether – a move praised by Greenpeace. First up, we took skate off the shelves and stopped selling huss, both highly threatened species. Skate alone accounts for £650,000 of annual sales, and in making such a firm commitment we became the first of the big four supermarkets to act. “By refusing to sell endangered species, large retailers such as Sainsbury’s can effect real change for marine conservation and help reverse decades of over fishing of our oceans,” says Bernadette Clarke, of the Marine Conservation Society (MCS), the UK charity dedicated to improving our seas and shores (not to be confused with the certification body, the MSC).

Working closely with the MCS and other stakeholders in the fishing industry, we’ve put together a new approach to fish sourcing, which we hope will revolutionise the industry. Some of the radical steps include:

• A traffic light grading system under which we will rate seafood as red, amber or green, according to a number of sustainability parameters. Red rated fish will simply not be sold, and we will only buy amber and green from sources that operate in a legal, open system that respects international laws and standards.
• Support for the development of fisheries that demonstrate a clear commitment to long-term sustainability and are operating to environmentally responsible criteria. We will drive best practice sourcing methods for wild caught and best practice management for farmed seafood.
• Engage with stakeholders who share our objectives. A commitment that, over time, all boats supplying Sainsbury’s are certified to the Seafish Responsible Fishing Scheme.

Plain sailing?

We have to admit that our ambitions have somewhat been trimmed down since we first shaped them. Our original target back in 2002 was to sell only sustainably certified wild caught fish by 2010. We aimed for all Sainsbury’s own-brand fresh, frozen and canned whole fish to be sourced from well-managed fisheries and certified by credible, independent systems. We do have a total of 20 Marine Stewardship Council certified products on sale so far, and the list is growing.

But it hasn’t all been plain sailing. The sheer size of Sainsbury’s fish supply – almost a quarter of the UK fresh fish market – has also posed a big challenge. But with little known about stocks in many areas of the world and little consensus about the definition of sustainable wild or farmed fish, solutions have not been obvious. Added to that, only relatively small volumes of fish are certified by the MSC, excluding popular species like haddock – and, until recently, cod. Our new objectives represent a more realistic approach considering the challenges we’re faced with.

Shaping an industry

While changing global legislation governing fishing practices is obviously not within our capabilities, we are working and consulting with our suppliers, marine conservationists, academics, and industry experts to get a clearer picture of what ‘best practice’ would look like, and to identify where our influence could be greatest.

We’re supporting research into fishing activities, the health of stocks, environmental impacts and fishing methods. And we’ve recently agreed a formal relationship with the MCS, providing them with financial assistance to support the work they do in the wild and farmed fish sectors [see right].

Luckily, our suppliers are willing to be continually challenged on their opinions and practices, and are willing to invest time and effort in our vision. It’s a vision we hope will not only modify practices in the industry, but also allow us to offer a sustainable product at a fair price.

Fishing for answers

Some of the implications of supplying sustainable fish have posed and still do pose a serious challenge to the business. For example, how do we improve the labelling of products containing MSC species when these are only seasonally available and have to be replaced with non-MSC species out of season – without incurring prohibitive packaging costs? How do we articulate complex issues to a broad client base (14 million customers) in a way that reassures those concerned about the issues, without confusing or alienating the rest? How do we ‘test’ the robustness of our conclusions when there is little consensus within the fishing industry and research and advocacy communities? And how do we manage the cost impacts of the changes, when our customers have little tolerance of price increases?

We are still searching for the answers to some of these questions. Despite entering unchartered waters, we’re determined not to be blown off course.

Friendlier farmed fish...

Fiona Wheatley is environment manager at Sainsbury’s.

9 October 2006