The first oyster fishery in the United States has entered the Marine Stewardship Council fisheries standard assessment. Prestige Oysters of San Leon, Texas has entered full assessment for oysters harvested in Texas and Louisiana. Photo: Prestige Oysters
by Prestige Oysters and Ed Lallo/Gulf Seafood News Editor
The first oyster fishery in the United States has entered the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) fisheries standard assessment. Prestige Oysters of San Leon, Texas has entered full assessment for oysters harvested in Texas and Louisiana. If granted, it would be the only oyster fishery certified in the Americas.
Prestige Oysters is ready to put our fishery up against the rigorous standards of MSC,” said Gulf Seafood Board Vice-President Raz Haili of Prestige Oysters. Photo: Ed Lallo/Newsroom Ink
The assessment involves a rigorous independent, third party process by the accredited certification body, MRAG Americas. The fishery is scored on three core principles: health of the target stock; impacts on marine environment; and fishery management.
“Sustainable seafood certifications are now permanently woven into the global seafood supply chain,” John Fiorillo, executive editor of IntraFish.com told Gulf Seafood News. ‘”The majority of major retail and food service buyers have sourcing policies now that mandate the purchase of certified seafood. While not every product carrying the Marine Stewardship Council’s eco-label commands a price premium in the market, there is plenty of evidence to show that the eco-label does indeed open market access for a wide array of MSC-certified products.”
Prestige Oysters grows American cupped oysters that are native to the Texas and Louisiana waters. Oysters are harvested using boat dredges on the company’s private wild oyster fishery that it has continually invested for more than two decades with the construction of oyster beds.
The company’s reefs are either natural or constructed from deposition of cultch (oyster shell, limestone, concrete, etc.) placed on soft bottom in suitable depths for oyster growth. Without additional cultch or natural growth of oysters that provides dead shell, the reefs would disappear over time, leaving little impact on the marine environment.
According to Halili, the process takes about nine to 12 months to complete. “We have already completed a pre-assessment with favorable results,” he told Gulf Seafood News. Photo: Prestige Oysters
“Oysters are an important commercial species as well as play a significant role in the marine ecosystem. If the fishery achieves certification, it will be validation of the fishery’s hard work to harvest oysters sustainably,” said Brian Perkins, Regional Director, Americas, MSC.
The MSC standard was established in 1997 and is the only wild caught seafood standard and eco-labeling program to meet United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (UNFAO) guidelines as well as meet Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative (GSSI) benchmarking criteria. These standards have been developed in deliberation with scientists, industry, and conservation groups, and reflect the most up-to-date fisheries science and management practices.
Three core principles that every fishery must meet are the basis of the standard:
- Sustainable fish stocks: Fishing activity must be at a level, which ensures it can continue indefinitely.
- Minimizing environmental impact: Fishing operations must be managed to maintain the structure, productivity, function, and diversity of the ecosystem.
- Effective Management: The fishery must comply with relevant laws and have a management system that is responsive to changing circumstances.
More than 300 fisheries in more than 34 countries are certified to the MSC’s Standard. Over 25,000 seafood products worldwide carry the MSC label and represent more 12% of global marine catch.
“The Gulf Seafood Foundation is extremely proud to have Prestige Oysters as a member,” said its chairman Jim Gossen. Photo: Ed Lallo/Newsroom Ink
“The Gulf Seafood Foundation is extremely proud to have Prestige Oysters as a member,” said its chairman Jim Gossen. “It is the effective management of young leaders like Raz Halili that will ensure the continued success of Gulf seafood being both sustainable and environmentally friendly. We wish the company the best in achieving this prestigious designation.”
“Prestige Oysters is extremely excited to be the first oyster fishery to enter MSC full assessment in the United States,” said Halili. “I’m confident in our fishery’s abilities to meet certification. It is important not only to us, but also our supply chain, to ensure the highest standards are met.”
The process takes about nine to 12 months to complete and pre-assessment has already started. The certification decision on the company’s Texas and Louisiana oysters is expected in the fall of 2019.
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