The Sustainable Fisheries Partnership Foundation – known as Sustainable Fisheries Partnership (SFP) – is a nonprofit organization based in the U.S. and registered under Internal Revenue Service code section 501(c)(3). The organization is dedicated to rebuilding depleted fish stocks and reducing the environmental and social impacts of fishing and fish farming through engaging fishery stakeholders (communities, NGOs, government, etc.) and seafood businesses in every part of the supply chain.
SFP’s overall ambition has always been to see that 100% of seafood worldwide is produced sustainably – in other words, to give everyone in the world the chance to eat sustainable seafood. This is obviously a distant and aspirational goal, likely many decades away into the future, but if we’re ever going to get there we need to lay out a route, complete with milestones and targets. That’s the goal of SFP’s Target 75 initiative, with an interim target that, by 2020, 75% of world production in key sectors is – at a minimum – either sustainable or making regular, verifiable improvements toward sustainability.
SFP improves access to information to guide responsible seafood sourcing, educating seafood companies, and enhancing their ability to influence policies and management practices. The organization works to improve fisheries through catalyzing fishery improvement projects (FIPs) and aquaculture improvement projects (AIPs), which are multi-stakeholder bodies that seek to advance the sustainability of fishing and fish farming operations. SFP also supports Supply Chain Roundtables (SRs) which allow seafood suppliers to work in a pre-competitive environment to promote improvement throughout the supply chain.
SFP also offers online tools for industry stakeholders. Most notable among these is our FishSource database, which offers up-to-date information on hundreds of fisheries worldwide. Through this database, visitors can learn of a fishery’s stock status, methods of management, and other data pertaining to the fishery’s impact on the environment.
Founded in 2006, SFP has more than 60 expert staff worldwide, and partners with retail and foodservice companies in nine countries. The organization has an annual budget of approximately $6 million and has implemented or supported field projects in more than 25 countries. Visit us at www.sustainablefish.org.
The Ocean Disclosure Project
Established in 2015 by Sustainable Fisheries Partnership, the Ocean Disclosure Project (ODP) is an online reporting platform for voluntary disclosure of seafood sourcing. The ODP works to increase transparency in seafood by enabling businesses to publicly report on the seafood they source. Companies are invited to submit their sourcing data showing the origin of their wild-caught and farmed seafood. The ODP then combines this source list with information on the environmental performance of those sources, including certification to GSSI recognized certification schemes, ratings from SFPs FishSource database and others, and notes on the environmental impact of each fishery or farmed source. This information is used to create annual company disclosures reflecting the company's sourcing from the previous year, which are then published on the ODP website. Visit the ODP at www.oceandisclosureproject.org.
For collaborating with SFP:
SFP regards the connections it makes to the industry as vital to its ongoing mission of building a more sustainable global seafood industry. We invite all industry leaders who share our concerns about long-term sustainability to consider partnering with us.
SFP Partners:
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Have access to key fisheries and aquaculture improvement projects that can directly impact their business.
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Can join supply chain roundtables that monitor and work with multiple fisheries or aquaculture operations all at once, making it easier to follow work in multiple sectors.
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Can use SFP’s Metrics system to track the progress of their company or their suppliers as they work toward more sustainable supplies of seafood.
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Receive invitations to exclusive, partner-only forums featuring presentations from and opportunities to network with industry thought leaders.
Anyone interested in their company becoming an SFP partner may contact us at info@sustainablefish.org to learn more.
