Traceability Advances Sea Port’s Go Blue!® Seafood Sustainability Goal for Wild Caught and Farm Raised Seafood

Update as of 12-06-16: Our “Traceability Declaration” requirement will now directly address Child Labor, Forced Labor, and other forms of Unfair Labor Practices within all the related supply chains associated with the production of wild caught and farm raised seafood.

Our unending corporate goal at Sea Port to advance all our seafood items towards becoming more environmentally and socioeconomically sustainable is embodied in our Go Blue!® Seafood Sustainability Spectrum.  Advancing this goal, however, can only be accomplished when every seafood item is fully traceable back to its wild caught or farmed source.

To this end, Sea Port has further improved our enhanced “Traceability Declaration” requirement (initiated in 2012) to now directly address our suppliers’ knowledge of any existing Child Labor, Forced Labor, and other forms of Unfair Labor Practices within their supply chains.

Please note below (shown in red) the new requirements added to our ‘Traceability Declaration” for both wild caught and farm raised seafood items.

Traceability Declaration for Wild Caught Seafood

·         Species and common name of product

·         Identifying Processor, Brokers, Buying Station, Auction Market, Vessel(s)

·         Catch Method(s), Catch Area (FAO#,etc.), Catch Date(s)

·         Supplier warrants and guarantees that it has complied with all forced labor rules under Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1307), including but not limited to the full prohibition on merchandise that has been mined, produced, or manufactured, wholly or in part, at any stage in the supply chain by forced labor, including prison labor and forced or indentured child labor.
      Yes ?   No ?
If no, then Sea Port cannot proceed with this purchase.

Traceability Declaration for Farmed Raised Seafood

·         Species and common name of product

·         Identifying Processor, Brokers, Buying Station, Auction Market, Farm(s)

·         Aquaculture Method(s) (extensive-intensive, pen, cage, etc.), Farm location, Harvest Date(s)

·         Supplier warrants and guarantees that it has complied with all forced labor rules under Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1307), including but not limited to the full prohibition on merchandise that has been mined, produced, or manufactured, wholly or in part, at any stage in the supply chain by forced labor, including prison labor and forced or indentured child labor.
Yes ?   No ?
If no, then Sea Port cannot proceed with this purchase.

Our commitment to constantly advance seafood sustainability will be greatly enhanced by this new Fair Labor addition to our “Traceability Declaration” requirement of our suppliers for both wild and farm raised seafood.

Go Blue! For Our Environment • For Our Health • For Sustainability

It’s Time to Reform the Hawaiian Longline Fishing Sector’s Use of Undocumented Workers

Seven to eight hundred undocumented foreign workers are currently used by the Hawaiian longline fishing fleet that catches primarily tuna and swordfish and these workers lack basic fair labor protections due to a federal loophole that was engineered by past Hawaiian congressmen.   It is now time to quickly reform this practice because the workers’ pay is typically much less than federal minimum wage, they cannot set foot on U.S. soil, and they are at very high risk of suffering all the abuses that are associated with human trafficking.

Because these trafficked foreign workers (mostly from S.E. Asia) have no visas and their passports and identification documents are confiscated by the vessel owners/captains, they are not able to ever leave the fishing boats.  This de facto permanent detention goes against the basic human right of mobility and provides very little ability for workers to protest or seek relief from unfair labor practices and dangerous workplace conditions.

Just this week the FBI concluded its 10^th annual Operation Cross Country in which it arrested 349 individuals for human trafficking for the U.S. and international sex trade.  While the sex trade both locally and internationally is certainly more abhorrent than the Hawaiian longline fishing sector’s labor trafficking, our seafood industry cannot tolerate any longer the condition of employment that they impose on their undocumented foreign workers.

The situation is simply unsustainable and not in the best interest of our seafood industry and seafood lovers everywhere.  All our efforts to promote seafood as the healthiest and most environmentally friendly animal protein on Earth will ring morally hollow if we don’t act now to stop human rights abuses and unfair labor issues in our own backyard and around the globe. 

It is definitely time to reform the Hawaiian longline fishing sector’s use of undocumented workers.

Sincerely,

David Glaubke, Director of Sustainability Initiatives

The Increasing Availability of 4 Star BAP Certified Shrimp

Sea Port is continuing to advance the environmental and social sustainability of farm raised shrimp by seeking to offer 4 Star BAP Certified Shrimp as they start becoming more available in the market place.

For years Sea Port has been a proud governing member of the Global Aquaculture Alliance that operates the BAP (best aquaculture practices) certification program.

Explanation of the BAP Star certification system: Each Star certifies that a specific supply chain activity for producing farmed raised shrimp is done with the best available aquaculture practices that minimize environmental impacts, respect workers’ rights and produce wholesome products.  The four specified areas are the processing plants, the farms, the hatcheries, and the feed mills.

Four Stars:  Product produced by a BAP-certified processing plant, BAP-certified farm(s) only, BAP-certified hatchery only and BAP-certified feed mill only

Three Stars:  Product produced by a BAP-certified processing plant, BAP-certified farm(s) only and BAP-certified hatchery and/or feed mill only

Two Stars:  Product produced by a BAP-certified processing plant and BAP-certified farm(s) only

One Star:  Product produced by a BAP-certified processing plant

Sea Port is an avid supporter of all the Stars of the Global Aquaculture Alliance’s BAP certification program.  Please consider sourcing your shrimp using the BAP Stars as your guideline and join Sea Port in helping to advance sustainable aquaculture.            

       Sincerely, David Glaubke - Director of Sustainability Initiatives - Sea Port

Let’s All Go Blue! During NATIONAL October Seafood Month

Within the last couple of years, “Sustainable global seafood production” has emerged as the world’s “poster child” for advancing the environmental stewardship of our precious blue planet.

During this October National Seafood Month, how can you contribute to this critical campaign?

The answer:  Simply commit to eat at least two responsibly sourced seafood meals/week for the month of October (and beyond).

Sea Port’s Go Blue! Initiative has always championed the consumption of seafood to promote sustainability and environmental stewardship because we strongly believe that both responsible wild fisheries and aquaculture production processes are the most environmentally friendly of all the global animal protein production systems.  We also strongly believe in the unique nutritional benefits that seafood offers to all age groups.

There is no easier action you can take to contribute to making our world more sustainable now and for future generations than to simply increase your seafood consumption.  In doing so, you will also be treating yourself to some of the healthiest and most delicious food on Earth!

Let’s all commit during this October National Seafood Month to increase our seafood consumption.  We will celebrate together as we become a part of the solution to advance the environmental stewardship of our wondrous blue planet while also improving our personal health.

Go Blue! – For Our Environment – For Sustainability – For Our Health

Sincerely yours,

David Glaubke, Director of Sustainability Initiatives

NFI Launches “Dish on Fish” Social Media Channels to Promote Seafood Consumption

Please visit these social media channels to help drive seafood consumption:

1.        Dish on Fish Blog

2.        Dish on Fish Facebook Page

3.        Dish on Fish Pinterest

4.        Dish on Fish Twitter

Sea Port enthusiastically encourages all customers, suppliers, and consumers to promote these NFI (National Fisheries Institute) social media channels to assist in promoting the consumption of seafood in the U.S. to at least 2 servings per week as recommended by the United States Dietary Guidelines.  Unfortunately, only 1 in 10 Americans follow this seafood consumption guideline.  We certainly have our promotional work cut out for us!

Sea Port believes that by consuming responsibly produced and sustainable seafood from both wild fisheries and aquaculture, we will advance our personal health and the environmental stewardship of our beautiful blue planet.  Let’s all join in and act boldly to collectively spread the health and environmental benefits of eating more seafood.  By acting together we will definitely make a positive difference going forward.

  

Please Go Blue!  For Our Health – For Our Environment – For Sustainability

                                                                                                                                     

David Glaubke

Director of Sustainability Initiatives

National Fisheries Institute Promoting Seafood Consumption Via New Blog

As a key part of its new initiative to educate Americans about the benefits and enjoyment of eating seafood, the National Fisheries Institute is expanding its online reach with the launch of a consumer-focused seafood blog, Dish on Fish; with supporting Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter channels.

“Dish on Fish” is an initiative sponsored by the NFI to encourage Americans to eat seafood at least twice a week, as recommended by the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

Sea Port encourages everyone in our seafood industry and everyone who loves seafood to bookmark this new blog site from the NFI and share it.  By working together we will help advance not only the health of America but also of our global aquatic resources that make seafood possible.

With new research findings emerging almost daily about the benefits of seafood in the diets of pregnant women, children, young adults, and seniors, Sea Port has made the commitment to helping people understand how adding seafood to the diet will benefit everybody.

 Please join both Sea Port and the NFI in spreading the fantastic news about seafood consumption.

                                      

              Go Blue!  For Our Health – For Our Environment – For Sustainability

Farm Raised White & Tiger Shrimp Advancing along Sea Port’s

 Go Blue! Seafood Sustainability Spectrums

Four years ago, Sea Port conducted sustainability assessments for both Farm Raised White & Tiger Shrimp in order to reveal the existing and potential environmental impacts and risks that were associated with producing these delicacies for human consumption.  The EMS disease crisis of the past 4-6 years, while creating a great setback in the production of farmed shrimp, has now created a positive wave of new aquaculture technologies and practices.  As a result, there has occurred an overall improvement in the sustainable husbandry of shrimp on a global basis. To celebrate this, Sea Port is now advancing Farm Raised White and Tiger Shrimp forward along their respective

 Go Blue! Seafood Sustainability Spectrums.

Rationale:

•      There is now more of a universal adherence to established best aquaculture practices as well as new practices such as using feed and both broodstock and nursery stocks that are disease free or resistant, maintaining cleaner pond bottoms, monitoring water quality in terms of striving for a healthy microbial balance that discourages the emergence of pathogenic opportunists, and implementing polyculture schemes using finfish species such as tilapia that complement water quality maintenance.  These advances and others have greatly reduced the negative environmental impacts associated with shrimp aquaculture in terms of protecting the surrounding ecosystems from farm effluents and conserving their productive natural resources that are used as farm inputs.  In addition, the growth in sustainable aquaculture certification schemes such as BAP, ASC, and GlobalG.A.P. have collectively helped drive these and other best practices toward greatly improving environmental and socioeconomic sustainability.

•      There are now efforts to manage regional shrimp farms in relationship to their proximity and sharing of hydrologic systems so that EMS or any other emerging disease problems such as EHP can be managed better in terms of preventing their spread to other farms and to the surrounding ecosystems.

•      Lastly, on the high-tech side, there are now available on-site diagnostic tools for both EMS & EHP that will enable near real-time detection of these disease agents in feeds, water, shrimp, and other substrates and this will greatly improve disease management.

From the major adversity caused by EMS, there has arisen a stronger and more mature global shrimp farming industry.  However, this aquaculture sector is still only in its infancy (please see Sea Port EMS Blog of 2013) and as new diseases inevitably emerge in the future, the lessons learned from EMS and EHP will greatly help mitigate their negative impacts to this industry that produces true seafood delicacies.  Please note and celebrate the advancement of the sustainability spectrum needles for both Farm Raised White and Tiger Shrimp:

Please continue to enjoy shrimp, American’s favorite seafood and stay tuned for future sustainability updates.

Go Blue! For Our Environment – For Sustainability – For Our Health

Sincerely,

David Glaubke,

Director of Sustainability Initiatives – Sea Port Products Corp.