As a result of a range of previous activities, and most recently brought into sharp relief by the delivery of a project on South East Asian fisheries jointly funded by IFFO, the Marine Ingredients Organization, and the Global Aquaculture Alliance (GAA), IFFO  fully recognizes the importance of  Fisheries Improver Programs (FIPs) and their potential to drive positive change in fisheries management and, consequently, sustainability. Together with IFFO RS, the Global Standard for Responsible Supply, IFFO calls for increased collaboration among stakeholders in regional fisheries and throughout the seafood supply chains. That increased collaboration will help facilitate the development and initiation of FIPs.

During the next SeaWeb Seafood Summit in Bangkok, IFFO RS will highlight the impacts of a closer collaboration in driving improvements in fisheries through FIPs and help coordinate contacts. Libby Woodhatch, IFFO RS Executive Chair, will chair a multi-stakeholder panel comprised of industry, NGOs and standard holders based and/or working in SE Asia, to discuss the growing requirements of the aquaculture supply chain for responsible supply, including assurances around the protection of human rights, fish for direct human consumption and the need for collaboration and harmonization in the approaches that are adopted to ensure consistency.

Libby Woodhatch said that “as underlined by the IFFO/GAA study, there is a collective need to work with South East Asian fisheries, which are often more complex than single species feed fisheries and to support them. The recommendations were a clear call to action and collaboration. They further validate the work currently being undertaken by IFFO RS in expanding the IFFO RS Improver Program to take into consideration the diverse and dispersed nature of the fisheries sector in countries across South East Asia. To achieve this goal, IFFO RS has been developing robust and credible assessment criteria through a series of pilots in multi species fisheries in Thailand and Vietnam.”