Greenpeace Ranks Italian Tuna Brands On Sustainabilityff
19 March 2012
Italy
Ten Italian brands of tuna are failing to deliver a sustainable product, according to Greenpeace’s latest sustainability ranking released last week.
The activist group investigated 14 Italian tuna brands, which together command more than 80% of the market in Italy, and ranked them according to their commitments to sustainability and their level of transparency.
Maruzzella, Conad, and MareAperto were ranked lowest, while Calvo-owned Nostromo was only marginally better.
“It’s a long process, but we have already started…There are already some projects that are moving in the direction that Greenpeace is asking,†said Silvia Montanari, a press officer for Nostromo.
Nostromo will not be adopting FAD-free fishing until they study sustainable methods further, she said. “We want to get really involved in the path towards sustainability, but we want to be sure that what we say is what we really are going to do, to be clear with the customers.â€
Auchan and Carrefour were the fifth and sixth least sustainable brands, followed by Consorcio, San Cusumano, Callipo, and Esselunga, in that order.
AsdoMar, Mareblu, Riomare, and Coop ranked the highest, but Greenpeace says their sustainability commitments are “not enough.â€
Still, Mareblu recently promised to source only pole-and-line and FAD-free tuna by the end of 2016. The brand, which is the third largest in terms of its sales in Italy, also committed to source more skipjack tuna instead of endangered yellowfin, and to stop sourcing vulnerable bigeye altogether. It also plans to label their products this year with the tuna species name, and where and how the tuna was caught.
“Some brands like Mareblu have shown that change is possible,†said Greenpeace campaigner Giorgia Monti. “What is Riomare, leader of the Italian market, waiting for?â€
Last December, Greenpeace found that 77% of Riomare products surveyed only disclosed the common name: tuna, and none disclosed the fishing area or method.
But, Riomare’s owner, tuna giant Bolton Alimentari committed to source 45% of its tinned tuna from pole-and-line or FAD-free fisheries by 2013. It is also working to achieve 100% sustainable tuna by 2017.
“There is huge change now taking place across the international tuna industry and this ranking makes clear that some Italian tinned tuna brands are part of that change. We’re really starting to see the industry divide into those who are phasing out wasteful fishing methods and those who are lagging behind,†said Greenpeace campaigner Oliver Knowles.
