Nothing fishy about sustainability in Spain!

WITH more than 340 fresh fish counters in its stores, Spanish supermarket chain Eroski have to purchase large amounts of all types of fish on an annual basis. Wherever possible it obtains sustainable product and has just announced that in 2019 it purchased 3,144 tons of fish which was certified by one or other of the recognised authorities. According to the supermarket, more than 1,800 tons were certified as coming from sustainable grounds by the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) and a further 800 tons were approved by GLOBALG.AP with their GGN seal. Eroski claims that it is the first supermarket in Spain to receive sustainability confirmation from MSC and GLOBALG.AP.

The company says that it is committed to satisfying its increasingly environmentally aware band of customers and that it is doing all it can to provide fish which will be replaced and therefore not causing decimation amongst the various species on offer. To add to its total, it confirmed that it had also stocked some 300 tons of fish of 50 species which had been caught using cane fishing poles rather than any other less acceptable means. Finally, the fresh tuna that it offered was approved by the Atún de Pesca Responsable division of AENOR, another Spanish organisation which is involved in managing standardisation and certification in a range of different industries including fishing. Clearly not all the supermarket’s fish product is certified sustainable, but it guarantees that if any fresh fish item carries the eco-label then it will have been recorded as coming from a sustainable source.