After April 24, shrimp from the North Sea, Skagerrak and Kattegatt will no longer be able to be sold as eco-labelled. This could have major consequences for the fishing industry.
According to the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, ICES, the North Sea shrimp does not meet the requirements for MSC certification. The council believes that the stock has become lower since the assessment model was changed.
Instead of counting the entire stock, you only look at the number of rum-bearing females. The shrimp is a hermaphrodite and changes sex after about two years. And according to the new assessment, sexually mature females have become fewer.
The shrimp fisherman critical
Jonas Klingander, Hönö’s only shrimp fisherman, does not share MSC’s view on the matter. He believes that the shrimp stock is at least as good as before and that they are still fishing in the same sustainable way.
How will it affect you who sell shrimp?
– If we’re unlucky, some big chains might not take in prawns that aren’t MSC-labelled. Then it could hit our market. Then we may not be able to sell our goods and then it will be a disaster. But we don’t know that yet.
MSC: Fishing pressure is too high
The Marine Stewardship Council, MSC, is an international organization that works to promote sustainable fishing. But the organization now assesses that the fishing does not live up to MSC’s standard for sustainable fishing according to the new model.
We have spoken to fishermen who believe that your assessment is incorrect and that there are definitely shrimp. How do you want to respond to that criticism?
“There are shrimp, but the fishing pressure is higher than what the scientific advice from ICES considers sustainable,” writes Louise Valentin, market developer at MSC, in an email to SVT Nyheter Väst.
Can the shrimp get their tag back?
“It is impossible to say at the moment. It partly depends on how the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) next stock estimate looks like, it is planned to be released in June 2024. We hope that all actors take their responsibility so that the stock will be strong and in the future we can enjoy the good fresh Swedish shrimp again .”