Naturland Fish & Seafood

Naturland Fish and Seafood

Today, over half of the fish and seafood consumed world-wide derives from aquaculture. Since the mid-1990s Naturland has dedicated itself to making fish farming sustainable, with the result that its organic standards for aquaculture are today’s leading benchmark. Nevertheless, wild fish remains an important source of food and the Naturland wild fish standards provide reliable criteria for its certification.

It makes no difference whether fish and seafood are caught wild or farmed, the important thing is to protect the natural environment and to ensure that stocks are not adversely affected. With its standards on Organic Aquaculture and Sustainable Capture Fishery, Naturland has established a framework for the sustainability of the species farmed. Besides this, however, fishing and aquaculture also have a direct impact on the people who work in these industries. This is why Naturland has also drawn up standards on Social Responsibility applicable both on board ship and on fish farms too.

Organic aquaculture
Naturland certifies over a dozen species throughout the world. These include among others freshwater fish and Atlantic salmon, mussels, warmwater shrimps and micro- and macroalgae. Algae play an increasingly important role in human nutrition. Organic aquaculture farms choose their locations with care and conserve the aquatic environment and surrounding eco-systems. They ensure that the various species are managed in keeping with their behavioural characteristics and cultivate low stocking densities. Further principles adhered to are freedom from genetic engineering, chemical additives, growth stimulants and hormones. The Naturland standards furthermore govern how the fish and seafood are processed, and not only how they are cultivated. Seamless monitoring, certified organic ingredients and abstention from additives such as phosphates are a matter of course.

A crucial factor in marine conservation is the source of the feed: Naturland fishers derive the fish meal and fish oil used in the feed from trimmings of fish being processed for human consumption and not, as is common elsewhere, from industrial fishing specialising in the production of feed.

Naturland Wildfish – sustainable catch and organic processing
The main focus of certification to the Naturland on Sustainable Capture Fishery standards is on small-scale fisheries and in particular those which set an especially good example. Naturland devotes particular attention to these fishing projects and draws on the advice of external experts to provide tailor-made solutions. Certification to the Naturland Wildfish standards makes it obligatory to adhere to social standards at every link along the value-added chain. Products displaying the Naturland Wildfish logo must have been processed according to the Naturland standards for organic products. Besides the general requirements for sustainable fishing, individual farm management requirements specific to each project are applicable. These contain additional specifications addressing ecological, social and economic aspects.