Coop Swiss to sell 100% sustainable fish products

Retail giant Coop Swiss has announced it will sell only fish approved by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). The retailer, which has over 2.5 million members, accounts for half...

Retail giant Coop Swiss has announced it will sell only fish approved by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).

The retailer, which has over 2.5 million members, accounts for half of all organic food sold in Switzerland and prides itself on taking people, animals and the environment into consideration when doing business.

As part of its sustainability strategy, Coop Swiss has set out a multi-annual target for 2014-2020. One of its objectives is been to work closely with the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), founded by WWF and a fisheries company.

The co-op was the first retailer in Switzerland to introduce MSC-certified products, including white tuna (canned), mackerel fillets (2008) and the European plaice (2009).

WWF focuses on reducing the impact of fishing, with support for sustainable fishing and good governance in regions such as the Arctic, the Indian Ocean, the Pacific, the Southern Cone and on the high seas.

Related: Co-op Group and Waitrose tighten ethical sourcing policies for tuna

The MSC certification is a guarantee that fishing is done at a level at which stocks can replenish naturally. In the case of overfished or endangered populations, catch quotas must be reduced to a level that allows stocks to recover.

Accredited fisheries are not permitted to compromise the structure, diversity and productivity of the affected ecosystem and its species.

Coop Swiss has been active in sustainable production of food and non-food products for many years. The supermarket entered into a strategic partnership with WWF in 2015, to raise customers’ awareness of sustainable behaviour and build up a corresponding product range.

It recently made the top tier of the Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare (BBFAW) report.

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