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Sustainability You Can Measure: ASC and the United Nations SDGs
August 25, 2025
In today’s fast-changing world of sustainability, everyone—from investors and regulators to everyday shoppers—wants more than promises. They want proof that businesses are making progress towards the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
For seafood, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) has become a trusted global standard for ensuring responsible seafood farming practices. In 2022, ASC released a report and methodology showing how responsible aquaculture directly supports the UN’s 17 SDGs. The research revealed that ASC certification contributes to all 17 goals, with more than 80% of related targets being well or very well addressed.
To better understand what this means in practice, we spoke with Bertrand Charron, ASC Director of Research and Insights. From boosting investor confidence to advancing climate action, and from building trust through transparency to driving innovation in blue finance, Bertrand explains how ASC is helping businesses turn sustainability goals into measurable, lasting impact.
Investor Assurance and Measurable SDG Metrics
Investors are demanding more data and greater assurance on SDG outcomes. How do ASC certified farms provide quantifiable, auditable metrics that financial institutions can rely on when evaluating the SDG performance of their aquaculture portfolios?
“There are good reasons for investors to demand greater assurance and visibility on performance and SDGs, as finance and sustainable development are closely interlinked. When the latter are ‘good’ or ‘bad’, this can impact returns on investment (RoI). The need for transparency was a core driver underpinning, for instance, the development of the European Union Green Deal’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
“This is precisely where the ASC can assist those companies and stakeholders. Defining meaningful and measurable KPIs to ensure that all the key potential negative environmental and social impacts are being addressed is quite unique in the realm of aquaculture certification and this considerably helps de-risk supply and value chains, as well as increase the industry’s positive social and environmental impacts.
“There is much greenwashing nowadays. Fact-checking, substantiation of claims and verification of performance data is paramount to bringing trust to investors, communities and consumers, and this ultimately helps responsible operations and industries play a rightful part in the Blue Revolution.”
SDG-Integrated Finance and the Role of ASC
With major banks now including ASC certification in Sustainability-Linked Loans (SLLs), does this mark a shift towards finance that is more closely aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)? And how does ASC help measure impacts such as greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and responsible feed sourcing?
“The increasing need for financiers and others to define the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) dimensions are a recognition that the third pillar of sustainability – Economics – is closely intertwined with the other two (Social and Environmental) and that you cannot truly engage on a sustainability journey without considering all three holistically. Effecting change on a global level requires upscaling.
“In light of this, there is a growing interest among impact investors in funding businesses that contribute positively to the SDGs and sustainability more broadly. However, it is still early days before we see widespread financial products or reporting frameworks that fully integrate all 17 SDGs and their 169 targets.
“We were pleased that the World Bank recognised ASC’s draft framework for measuring SDG performance (‘SDG Framework for alignment with the UN SDGs’) in its Global AquaBusiness Investment Guide (Component 1.12). This shows that there is increasing awareness of the need for holistic, collaborative solutions to unlock and scale up ‘blue finance’.
“Some of the financial tools designed to reduce investment risk by demanding responsible practices are SLLs. That’s why we welcome ASC often being recognised as a target or requirement within SLLs and included in banks’ financial policies.
“Take Climate Action (SDG 13), for example. It’s vital to address the carbon footprint of food production, measuring, monitoring and reducing not just energy use, but also GHG emissions – an impact that is still too often unmeasured or inconsistently reported.
“To help tackle this, ASC has been developing a Greenhouse Gas Calculator based on Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) for several years. This tool allows responsible aquaculture producers to show leadership in addressing climate change.”
Transparency, Data, and Closing the SDG Gap
Overall, the industry still lacks updated and quality data to track progress in meeting SDG targets. How important is transparency and timely public disclosure in aquaculture for meeting SDG targets—and how can certification schemes like ASC help bridge this critical data gap for investors and regulators alike?
“I’ve alluded earlier to some of those points in terms of investor trust and confidence when it comes to ESG data. First and foremost, however, ASC’s transparency convictions are driven by the central function of accountability in building credibility, demonstrating impact and helping to provide the industry with the ‘social licence to operate’ it needs to upscale.
“This is where credible and transparent certification schemes can play an important role: not only by setting the standard and sustainability bar high enough to be meaningful, but also by assuring and verifiably de-risking those value chains and creating a pathway for stakeholder acceptance and trust. Genuine transparency – as sustainable development – may not always constitute the easiest pathway. It requires proactive public disclosures, including disclosing non-conformance and corrective actions taken to improve and pass the bar.
“True transparency goes beyond processes and practices—it means delivering verifiable performance and measurable impact. That’s what makes it demanding. Yet it’s essential for building confidence and trust in what is certified, and for credibly answering the inevitable stakeholder question: ‘Prove it.’”
Takeaways from the UN Ocean Conference and Monaco Blue Economy and Finance Forum
What were the main takeaways from the United Nations Ocean Conference and the Monaco Blue Economy and Finance Forum (BEFF)?
“In the months leading up to the UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) in Nice this June, there was a real sense of momentum and practical action. One outcome was the launch of the Ocean Investment Protocol (OIP) by the UN Global Compact and UNEP Finance Initiative at the BEFF in Monaco, which ASC was honoured to be invited to attend.
“To transform food systems and protect biodiversity, we need transparency, stakeholder engagement, and reliable, publicly available performance data. This principle is central to ASC’s approach.
“BEFF was the first time that so many key players in Blue Finance – from private and institutional investors to governments, philanthropists, international agencies, industries, innovators, and policymakers – came together in one place. It was instrumental in financial commitments totalling €8.7 billion by 2030 towards the Blue Economy and it set the tone for the UNOC that followed.
“The optimism around Blue Finance was also reflected in a joint call by UN agencies and global partners to co-design a ‘One Ocean Finance’ process. This aims to unlock billions in investment and deliver ‘triple-win outcomes’ for people, nature, and climate.
Another major theme was encouraging countries to ratify the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. ASC was also proud to be chosen to speak at the UN Ocean Action Panel 9 on ‘Promoting the role of sustainable food from the ocean for poverty eradication and food security’.”
Conclusion
From investor assurance to climate action, transparency plays a critical role in driving sustainable aquaculture. ASC’s commitment to accountability and public disclosure is not just about meeting compliance requirements—it’s about building the trust, credibility, and data-driven verifiable impacts the industry needs to secure its future.
With blue finance gathering momentum and global frameworks recognising ASC’s impact, the opportunity for aquaculture to be a leader in the SDG era has never been clearer. As Bertrand reminds us, the path forward is about meaningful, verifiable and robust sustainability data — and action, finally, is underway.
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