Sustainability. In Plain English. Alaska Seafood

Transcription

1 ALASKA SEAFOOD MARKETING INSTITUTE Intrnational Markting Offic& Administration: 311 N. Franklin St., Suit 200, Junau, AK U.S. Markting Offic: 150 Nickrson Strt, Suit 310, Sattl, WA Alaska Safood Sustainability In Plain English 2014 ASMI NOT FOR RESALE

2 Th sustainabl safood movmnt is swping across th world, and mor and mor popl ar taking intrst. But what dos all this talk about sustainability rally man? And what impact dos your choic for dinnr hav on th world around you? In th pags ahad, w mak sustainability asy. So that in just minuts, you can larn how to mak a smart, sustainabl safood choic vry tim. To start, all you hav to do is visit Alaska... bginning on th vry nxt pag.

3 Alaska [ -'las-k ] n. Th last frontir is first in sustainability. If you r lik most popl, you know Alaska for its snow-covrd mountains, glacirs that dat back millions of yars, and th incrdibl grn bauty in summrtim. But th stat is also a world modl for sustainability and mayb for govrnmntal gnius, too. That s bcaus Alaska is th only stat with a mandat for sustainabl safood writtn right into its Stat Constitution. All told, Alaska supplis mor than half of th wild-caught safood in th Unitd Stats. And Alaska will always b hom to th gratst salmon runs in th world, providing as much as 95 prcnt of North Amrica s wild salmon. To larn mor about Alaska s tradition of sustainability, rad on. What kinds of safood com from Alaska? n Fiv spcis of salmon: king, socky, coho, kta and pink n A wid varity of whitfish, including halibut, black cod, Alaska Pollock, cod, sol and surimi safood n King, snow (opilio and bairdi) and Dungnss crab n Alaska Wathrvan scallops n Spot prawns

4 Sustainabl Safood [s -'stā-n -b l'sē- ' füd] n. Having nough fish to go around. What is sustainabl safood? It s safood that s managd and fishd using practics that nsur thr will always b mor to catch in th futur. Th scrt to Alaska s succss lis in two basic principls: n Rsponsibl fishris managmnt and sustainabl fishing practics tak car not to harm th fish, othr marin plants and animals, nor th nvironmnt. n Fish populations ar nvr ovrfishd. Ovrfishing happns whn too many fish ar takn from th sa and thr ar not nough fish lft to rplnish th natural population. Alaska boasts having on of th world s fw govrnmnts that is truly ddicatd to sustainability. It s a commitmnt that dats all th way back to Alaska bcoming a stat in 1959, whn Alaskans wrot sustainability into thir Constitution calling for all fishris to b sustainably managd. In this way, Alaska promiss to provid wildcaught and sustainabl safood for gnrations to com.

5 Rsponsibility & Commitmnt [ri- ' spän(t)-s -'bi-l -tē n(d) k -'mit-m nt] n. What ach of us must do to nsur sustainabl safood. From th fishrman to th supplir, from th chf to th dinr or from th rtailr to th consumr w all hav a rol to play in nsuring that sustainabl safood lands on our plats. In Alaska, this rvrnc for fish can b sn in nativ arts dating back cnturis, as wll as in th fishing practics of th thousands of familis who today mak thir living off th sa. In fact, fishing and safood procssing mploy mor popl than any othr industry in Alaska. Bing rsponsibl stwards of this natural rsourc mans that ths fishing familis must somtims put asid short-trm opportunitis. Thy undrstand th importanc of obying th strict fishing laws, using carful harvsting mthods, accuratly rporting thir catchs and adhring to scintific data. Th mn and womn who fish th 34,000 mils of Alaskan coastlin know that taking such masurs is th only way to protct th fish and thir livlihood. But it dosn t stop thr. It is th rsponsibility of supplirs, chfs and rtailrs to spcifically purchas sustainabl safood from fishris lik thos in Alaska fishris that can prov ach fish was managd and caught in a sustainabl way. Consumrs also hav th opportunity to mak a diffrnc. By purchasing only sustainabl safood, you can influnc th markt and incras awarnss of making rsponsibl safood choics.

6 An Idal Environmnt [ī-'dē(- )l in-'vī-r (n)-m nt] adj. Fishing aras that ar clan, halthy, and protctd from harmful activitis. In a naturally clan nvironmnt, salmon, whitfish varitis and shllfish at only what natur provids. This is Alaska, whr marin habitats ar protctd from harmful fishing mthods, unncssary human disturbanc, industrial activitis and pollution. And how dos Alaska mak sur th nvironmnt stays that way? Start with th Marin Protctd Aras (MPAs). Mor than 40 MPAs, covring hundrds of thousands of squar mils hav bn stablishd in th watrs off Alaska to safguard this snsitiv habitat from human activity. This protcts mor than th wild-caught safood you njoy. Whals, sa lions, ottrs and birds ar also nsurd saf, clan habitats. Alaska also follows a numbr of govrnmntal protction acts, including th Marin Mammal Protction Act, th Fur Sal Act, and th Magnuson- Stvns Fishry Consrvation Act. How vigilant is th stat in protcting marin lif? No Alaska safood has bn listd as ndangrd undr th Endangrd Spcis Act. Evr.

7 Scinc-basd ['sī- n(t)s-'bāst] adj. How fishrmn know how many fish thy can catch. BIOMASS & CATCH LIMITS (MILLION MT) In Alaska, th numbrs do mor than just tll th story. Thy ar th story. That s bcaus vry aspct of fishing in Alaska is basd on th latst scintific data. As nw rsarch mrgs, th scintists of Alaska s fishris st nw guidlins for th total numbr of fish that can b caught. It s a complicatd procss, to b sur, but on that prvnts ovrfishing and hlps maintain a halthy Bring Sa/Alutian Islands (BSAI) Groundfish Catch Limits and sustainabl fish population, whil BIOMASS also prsrving th dlicat cosystm. It s such a prcautionary and consrvativ approach, Alaska s fishris hav bcom a modl for th world. ABC Scintists first calculat th Accptabl TAC Biological Catch (ABC), which is th maximum numbr of fish that can b sustainably caught. As th chart shows, this is a vry small portion of th total amount of fish, th Biomass, availabl in th sa. Thn, to b xtra cautious, fishris managrs go a stp furthr and dtrmin th Total Allowabl Catch (TAC), which is th total amount of fish that can lgally b harvstd. Bcaus this numbr nvr xcds th Accptabl Biological Catch, th stat of Alaska nsurs thr will always b plnty of fish in th sa, sason aftr sason.

8 Govrnanc & Managmnt ['g -v r-n n(t)s n(d) 'ma-nij-m nt] n. Policis and fishing mthods that nsur Alaska safood rmains sustainabl. Bing sustainabl is not just a mattr of following th scinc. It s a larg-scal commitmnt to rsponsibl fishris managmnt and a strong govrning systm. In Alaska, th National Marin Fishris Srvic and th Alaska Dpartmnt of Fish & Gam (along with svral othr organizations at th stat, fdral and intrnational lvl) work togthr to st sustainabl fishry managmnt mthods that uphold Alaska s high standards. Th stat of Alaska mploys th following practics: n Tim-and-ara closurs (this allows fishing during crtain tims or in crtain aras, but not in othrs) n Rstrictions on siz of boats n Rstrictions on typ of fishing gar n Gar prohibition

9 Collaboration [k -'la-b - rā-sh n] n. How vryon works ' togthr in Alaska to mt this common goal. Sustainabl safood in Alaska is th rsult of an nviabl modl of coopration btwn th stat s citizns and a govrning systm that works. Th stat s uniqu blnd of collaboration and public dcisionmaking ar ky faturs of th Alaska fishris managmnt modl. Stat, fdral and intrnational organizations, for instanc, all work togthr to manag and ovrs th major Alaska fishris salmon, groundfish, halibut and crab. Ths organizations ar rsponsibl for scintific rsarch, nforcmnt of th laws, stting policis, and dtrmining th numbr of fish that can b caught basd on th scintific data. What s mor, public participation by fishrmn and safood procssors, as wll as nvironmntal groups, is ncouragd. Alaskans bliv that th opportunity for th public to participat in th fishris managmnt procss hlps build widsprad undrstanding about th importanc of smart managmnt actions.

10 Enforcmnt [in-'fōr-sm nt] n. How Alaska maks sur th ruls ar followd. By now, it s clar that fishing in Alaska is mor than simply casting a lin in th watr and waiting for a fish to bit. A strict st of ruls is in plac. And whr thr ar ruls, thr must b nforcmnt. In Alaska, stat and fdral agncis ar rsponsibl for nforcing th sustainabl fishing practics and laws. Ths includ th Alaska Dpartmnt of Public Safty s Wildlif Trooprs, th National Marin Fishris Srvic Offic for Law Enforcmnt, and th U.S. Coast Guard, among othrs. Fishrmn and safood procssors ar carfully monitord and controlld to mak sur that vryon is following th ruls and accuratly rporting th numbr of fish that hav bn caught.

11 [ s r-t -f -'kā-sh n] n. A way to b ' crtain your safood is sustainabl. Crtification With somthing as important as sustainability you might want assurancs that fishry managrs ar doing th right thing, that s why numrous organizations valuat and crtify fishris as rsponsibl. Th majority of Alaska s fishris bar at last on typ of crtification and many ar crtifid undr th FAO- Basd Modl for Rsponsibl Fishris Managmnt. This crtification shows that fishris mt th critria of th Unitd Nations Food and Agricultur Organization (FAO) Cod of Conduct for Rsponsibl Fishris. This is th most comprhnsiv and rspctd fishris managmnt guidlins in th world, cratd with th participation of lading fishry biologists, nvironmntal organizations and fishry managrs rprsnting mor than svnty countris. But rmmbr thanks to our stat constitution all Alaska safood is rsponsibly managd rgardlss of crtification. Thr ar numrous rasons for fishris to sk crtification but what rally mattrs is how wll th fishry is managd.

12 Tracability [ trā-s -'bi-l -tē] n. How rstaurants and suprmarkts ' know that th Alaska safood thy buy is sustainabl. Tracability is th ability to follow th movmnt of a food through spcifid stags of production, procssing and distribution. * It can b achivd by having a systm for kping track of products as thy ar rcivd, procssd, labld and shippd. Strict laws mak sur that vry fish a rstaurant or suprmarkt ordrs from Alaska, is from Alaska. All Alaska safood supplirs must conform to applicabl national and intrnational laws govrning food producrs. Alaska safood supplirs go a stp byond and also conform to th Alaska Safood Markting Institut s Tracability Standard. This way, a rstaurant or suprmarkt can always chck to mak sur th safood thy rciv is wild and sustainabl safood from Alaska. To s th Alaska Safood Markting Institut s Tracability Standard, visit *Codx Alimntarius

13 Tak Action ['tāk 'ak-sh n] v. What you can do to hlp. Whn it coms to slcting from a wid varity of halthy and dlicious, sustainabl safood options, Alaska has you covrd. Whn you buy Alaska safood, you ar making a rsponsibl and tasty choic that s good for you and supports sustainabl safood. So nxt tim you r at your favorit rstaurant or suprmarkt, b sur to ask your waitr or fishmongr whr th safood cam from and how it was fishd. Bttr yt, simply ask for Alaska, or look for th Alaska Safood logo. For mor information on sustainabl fishing practics and Alaska safood, plas visit

14 About th artist: Ri Muñoz Larn th Lingo Glossary of sustainabl safood and harvsting trminology. Ri Muñoz is on of Alaska s most blovd and rcognizd artists, portraying th daily lif of Alaskans with snsitivity, vivid colors and whimsical humor. Having spnt most of hr lif in Alaska, Muñoz work is an ngaging and intimat portrait of lif in Alaska with a focus on vryday activitis such as fishing and procssing safood. Although sh was raisd in California, a vacation on a whim brought hr to Alaska in Sh has bn a proud Alaskan vr sinc, living in many of Alaska s small communitis and holding a varity of jobs including journalist, tachr, musum curator, artist and mothr. In 1972, sh dcidd to dvot hrslf fulltim to hr art. Muñoz studid art at Washington and L Univrsity in Virginia and at th Univrsity of Alaska-Junau. Sh rcivd th Univrsity of Alaska's Honorary Doctorat of Humanitis Dgr in May of Sh was also th rcipint of th 2004 Govrnor s Award for Individual Artist, and sh was inductd into th Alaska Womn s Hall of Fam in Hr paintings, prints and rproductions ar carrid by gallris throughout th U.S. and Canada. Sh has had many watrcolor xhibits in Alaska, Orgon and Washington Stat. My artwork can bst b dscribd as xprssionism. Th trm applis to work that rjcts camra snapshot ralism, and instad, xprsss motion by distortion and strong colors. My paintings rflct an intrst in th day-to-day activitis of Alaskans such as fishing, brry picking, childrn at play, and crabbing. I am also fascinatd with th lgnds of Alaska s Nativ popl. Whil I find much to paint around Junau, most of my matrial coms from sktching trips takn to th far cornrs of Alaska. I v travld and sktchd almost vry community in Alaska. Accptabl Biological Catch Th maximum numbr of fish that can b harvstd. This is a vry small portion of th total amount of fish (biomass) availabl in th sa. Bycatch Spcis unintntionally caught. Catch Limits Th amount of fish allowd to b caught in a yar. Escapmnt Th annual stimatd numbr of spawning salmon that scap captur in a fishry. Ovrfishing Catching so many fish that too fw ar lft in th ocan to rproduc at rats that can sustain a halthy population. Ovrfishing occurs whn fish ar caught fastr than thy can rproduc. Prcautionary Principl A sustainabl fishris managmnt principl that mphasizs a cautionary approach, rring on th sid of consrvation. Sustainabl Safood Safood from fishris that can xist long-trm without compromising th survival of th spcis or th halth of th surrounding cosystm. Total Allowabl Catch Th total amount of fish that fishrmn can lgally harvst. This numbr is always lss than th accptabl biological catch. Tracability Th ability to follow th movmnt of a food through spcifid stags of production, procssing, and distribution. Mark Klly