The Global Seafood Alliance, which certifies seafood production farms for Best Aquaculture Practices, has seen its membership increase in the past year. By the end of 2021, there will be 3,169 BAP-certified facilities on six continents. This is an increase of 8.6 percent over the number of facilities certified in 2020.
Global Seafood Alliance
The Global Seafood Alliance (GAA) is an international certification program that encourages responsible aquaculture. Its goal is to produce sustainable seafood and promote the responsible farming of fish. This nongovernmental organization aims to provide information and resources to support responsible aquaculture. GAA also issues a letter of status to member companies, which acknowledges their progress toward its goals.
The organization’s website contains information about the program and its certification standards. It also offers recipes, background information on aquaculture, and information on the health benefits of seafood. In addition to promoting BAP certification, the site links to BAP retail partners to help consumers identify products that are produced sustainably.
In addition to the Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP), the Global Seafood Alliance also offers certification programs for wild-capture fisheries. The program links responsible wild capture fisheries with certified facilities and vessels. It has become the leading source of seafood assurance in the world. There are now more than 1,600 certified facilities worldwide. More than 150 food and beverage brands have publicly committed to sourcing their seafood from certified facilities.
Global Aquaculture Alliance
The Global Aquaculture Alliance has launched a certification program for aquaculture facilities to meet its standards for best practices. Since the alliance was formed in 2008, the program has certified more than 2,500 facilities worldwide. Its standards address social responsibility, environmental responsibility, food safety, and animal welfare, as well as traceability and quality. It also provides quantitative guidelines for evaluating adherence to best aquaculture practices.
In addition to its certification program, the GAA is actively engaging with industry and government organizations to promote responsible aquaculture and raise consumer awareness of the benefits of this sustainable method of food production. It is also promoting coordinated government and international trade policies that support aquaculture. It has also created a marketing toolkit for retailers to promote responsible aquaculture. Using these marketing assets, retailers can easily explain the benefits of sustainable aquaculture to consumers.
The Global Aquaculture Alliance also offers a certification program for seafood processing centers. To become certified, seafood processing centers must pass an independent audit and submit traceability records. In addition, they must pay yearly fees based on the volume of seafood they produce. Once certified, seafood processors can display the blue BAP label on their products. This ensures that the seafood is produced responsibly and did not harm the environment in any way.
Global Food Safety Initiative
Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification is a certification program used by seafood processors to improve food safety. It is administered by the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) and consists of standards for the whole aquaculture value chain. The program includes environmental, social, and animal welfare standards. It is the only certification program in the world to address all four areas.
The GFSI continues to refine its benchmarking requirements. It published version 7.1 in 2017 and invited all of its accredited certificate programmes to complete a new benchmarking assessment. The GAA submitted an application to participate in this new assessment and has been re-benchmarked by the organisation. This will ensure that the latest requirements are being adopted by the industry.
In addition to creating certification standards, the GAA works with the industry to increase production efficiency. It supports technological research, provides information to its members, and promotes responsible aquaculture globally. The organization’s vision is to promote environmentally-friendly aquaculture while meeting the growing global demand for seafood. It also advocates for coordinated government and international trade policies. BAP certification helps retailers and producers communicate the benefits of responsibly produced fish and seafood.
Standard for certification
The Global Aquaculture Alliance has developed a Standard for Certification of Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP), which has been recognized by the Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI). The BAP standard addresses a wide range of issues in the aquaculture industry, including animal welfare, environmental responsibility, food safety and traceability. It also covers all aspects of the aquaculture supply chain. It takes a holistic approach to all aspects of aquaculture, including community relations, employee relations, environment conservation, and drug/chemical management.
The Global Aquaculture Alliance has been developing the BAP Standard for more than a decade. Its mission is to advance responsible, sustainable aquaculture. The BAP standard has been developed in response to the growing demand for aquaculture foods, as well as concerns over food safety and environmental issues. The standards are based on independent audits and are designed to provide consumers with confidence that seafood is produced in a responsible, environmentally sustainable manner.
The BAP Standard also has social and labour standards for the industry. This work supports GAA’s ambition to protect human rights. The work of the KIT has helped the GAA develop socially sustainable seafood programmes.
Criteria for certification
Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) is a certification standard for seafood farming that covers all aspects of aquaculture. The BAP standard sets high standards for environmental and social responsibility, food safety, and animal welfare. It is the first certification scheme that focuses on the entire aquaculture production chain, from hatcheries to processing plants. Certified aquaculture companies are required to manage water and soil, as well as use clean chemicals.
ASC certification shows that an aquaculture farm is committed to the environment and the surrounding community. The certification is offered for 15 different species, including salmon, trout, tilapia, catfish, and seaweed. To receive the certification, an aquaculture farm must use environmentally sound methods, respect surrounding communities, and operate socially responsibly. Since 2014, Bureau Veritas has been offering this certification.
Best Aquaculture Practices standards are independently verified by a third party. This ensures the quality of seafood and the safety of the environment. The BAP standard covers many important issues, including stocking densities and tracking systems. However, it doesn’t cover the most controversial issues in aquaculture, such as drug use and labor practices.
Cost of certification
Best Aquaculture Practices certification is a mark that specifies that a seafood farm or business has met certain standards and adheres to strict animal welfare and environmental regulations. The certification also ensures that the seafood is safe for consumers. Its requirements are based on the Global Food Safety Initiative and the BAP Seafood Processing Plant Standard. Obtaining BAP certification also gives a business access to a large purchasing network.
Certification costs vary from program to program, and often depend on the size of the facility seeking certification. Membership fees and other costs associated with the certification process can increase operating costs. However, aquaculture producers should note that participation in a certification program may result in a substantial financial return. Certification programs provide the opportunity to label products as meeting quality assurance thresholds, and in many cases, are more stringent than state or national regulations.
The Global Aquaculture Alliance has developed a BAP certification standard based on science-based performance standards, and it is a globally recognized standard that ensures a socially and environmentally responsible supply chain. The program also offers independent audits to help ensure that facilities meet the standards. As of January 2015, more than 800 aquaculture farms and processing plants have received BAP certification, up from seven hundred at the end of 2014. More than 1.6 million metric tons of fish produced by certified facilities is being processed worldwide, and the number of companies offering BAP products is growing.
Benefits of certification
One of the key benefits of aquaculture certification is its ability to stimulate cooperative relationships among small-scale aquaculture farmers. However, aquaculture certification programs cannot achieve this objective without government support. In addition, some NGOs and academics have criticized the concept of aquaculture certification. For example, Lester Brown has written an article voicing his concern over the sustainability of fish. In this article, he advocates that consumers purchase seafood over beef from non-certified producers.
The certification process is also important for small-scale aquaculture farms, which represent over 80 percent of aquaculture production. These operations typically consist of a small area of land and rely primarily on family labor. As a result, they tend to have low economic turnover and minimal operational investments.
Aquaculture certification programs must be responsive to changes in aquaculture science and the needs of small-scale farmers. Hence, they should involve diverse stakeholders and provide transparency in the standard-setting process. In addition, certification should address the environmental impacts of aquaculture. Special attention should be given to sustainable feed ingredients, habitat rehabilitation and ecosystem services, and energy consumption reduction. In some cases, it may be necessary to develop area-based approaches to address the impacts of aquaculture beyond individual farms.
