Fishing

The world’s first tuna fishery, the American Albacore Fishing Association (AAFA), became certified to the MSC standard in September 2007. The fishery uses pole and troll to catch albacore tuna and has near zero bycatch.
© AAFA

Strong market demand and poor governance often support unsustainable fisheries. WWF aims to reverse this global threat to marine fishes and their ocean habitat, using market forces and consumer power to promote well-managed, healthy fisheries.

We provide the producers of wild-caught seafood with the technical assistance to assess and adjust their current operations so they can achieve credible certification, such as Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification. We are also working with industry leaders to develop the first measurable, science-based standards for aquaculture products. These standards are
designed to minimize or eliminate the key environmental and social impacts of fish farming.

WWF and our partners are working with major seafood buyers to use their purchasing power to secure seafood from sustainable sources, assess current supply chains and improve the management of the world’s fisheries. By working with retailers’ with considerable buying power, such as Wal-Mart, we can influence the global seafood market and ensure the continuity and quality of the fishing industry as a whole. 

WWF and Walmart: the results of partnership

As the world’s largest retailer, Walmart buys and sells thousands of seafood and aquaculture products every year. 

Understanding that with their size and scale they could effect change within the entire industry, the company committed to purchasing 100 percent of its fresh and frozen, farmed and wild seafood products - including shrimp, crabs, and lobster, sold in Walmart and Sam’s Club stores in the United States from MSC-certified sources.

To make this goal a reality, WWF joined together with Walmart, MSC, and the Sustainable Fisheries Partnership. We are assisting Walmart in using their purchasing power to secure seafood from environmentally sustainable sources by actively engaging with fisheries to develop fishery improvement plans in accordance with MSC certification standards. This specific support of fishery improvement work represents a significant win for WWF’s approach to sustainable seafood.  As retailers with some of the highest seafood product volume worldwide, Walmart and Sam’s Club renewed commitment to sustainable fishing and aquaculture practices will have global implications for fisheries.

Learn more about how WWF is working for a sustainable seafood market place

Multi-lateral partnerships