Contact: Mike Crispino
703-752-8897
mcrispino@iss-foundation.org
April 21, 2009 Washington, DC – As millions of environmentally conscious consumers spend a little more time thinking about their footprint on nature this Earth Day, some of the world’s top tuna producers have committed to working with conservationists to keep stocks sustainable.
“A lot of people depend on tuna in their diet and without a firm hand on conservation and sustainability of the ocean’s resources, that tuna will not be available for future generations,” said Bill Fox, WWF’s vice president and managing director of fisheries.
In March, WWF, the global conservation organization, and the International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) went public with a first-of-its-kind partnership. Together the groups are focused on science-based solutions to solving the critical need for conservation of the world’s tuna stocks.
“More and more retailers and their customers are demanding producers supply sustainable products,” said ISSF President Susan Jackson. “Shelf-stable tuna must be sustainable. The companies we work with have made the health of the world’s tuna stocks a priority and this effort shows just how devoted they are to that commitment.”
“Companies that voluntarily signed on to our mission did it because sustainable stocks of tuna benefit both business and the overall ecosystem. With this partnership stakeholders are saying – trouble with tuna? Not on our watch.”
This month, ISSF is expected to update the status of the stocks in order to help the foundation develop and adopt conservation measures for the 19 stocks its members source from.
The International Seafood Sustainability Foundation (ISSF) is a global partnership among science, the tuna industry and the environmental non-governmental organization community. Its mission is to undertake science-based initiatives for the long-term conservation and sustainable use of tuna stocks, reducing by-catch and promoting ecosystem health.
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