Charoen Pokphand Foods PCL (CP Foods) announced progress made on reducing antibiotics in aquaculture and seafood sustainability efforts as a part of the Seafood Business for Ocean Stewardship (SeaBOS) initiative.

SeaBOS recently launched the SeaBOS Progress report 2017-2022, following commitments made at the 2017 UN Ocean Conference.

Sujint Thammasart, DVM, Chief Operating Officer – Aquaculture Business of CP Foods and sponsor of Task Force III, said that the company, as a member of SeaBOS for international cooperation in protecting the oceans, natural resources, and marine environment to move towards the goals of conservation of ecosystems and responsible production of quality seafood for humans in a sustainable manner.

He said CP Foods is among the lead companies in Task Force III – Working with governments and AMR. The Task Force aims at developing solutions with governments on key threats to sustainable seafood and ocean health. The work includes improving the knowledge and understanding surrounding health, climate, and societal benefits of sustainable seafood production. Special focus is on achieving improved antibiotic stewardship in SeaBOS and the industry. This is to avoid the development and spread of antimicrobial resistance, in humans and animals.

“The working group will work together to finalize the SeaBOS Antibiotics Code of Conduct” by October 2022, and the SeaBOS member companies will implement the Code of Conduct in their own businesses as well as transfer it to suppliers in their supply chains of both animal feed production and aquaculture farms,” Sujint said.

CP Foods has prioritized the antimicrobials policy as follows:

• Requiring those antimicrobials that are medically important for human medicine shall be used only for therapeutic uses under veterinary oversight.
• Eliminating the use of shared-class antimicrobials which are medically important for human medicine for growth promotion purposes globally.
• Working with global experts and partnering with all stakeholders to identify new and better ways to care for animals to enhance animal welfare and to reduce the need for antimicrobials.

CP Foods is applying the policy throughout the global food supply chain and collaborating with all parties in appropriately protecting the health of people, animals and the global community under the "One Health" approach.

Aside the phasing-out of antibiotics, there is a mutual agreement on applying global regulations throughout the supply chain, promoting legal fishing, eliminating illegal labor, developing traceability systems, refraining from using antibiotics, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions and the use of plastic through cooperation in technology, research and development coupled with implementation and practicality.