Global Abalone aquaculture standards completed

Global standards addressing the potential negative impacts of abalone farming on the environment and society were finalised today by the Abalone Aquaculture Dialogue, a roundtable of a broad range of stakeholders, coordinated by World Wildlife Fund.

The completion of the abalone standards marks the halfway point for the finalisation of eight sets of global aquaculture standards. Certification standards for bivalves, pangasius and tilapia have been completed recently. Standards for shrimp, freshwater trout, salmon, Seriola and cobia are expected to be finalised by mid-2011.

“Given that the process we used to create the standards was transparent and involved more than 100 people, including farmers and scientists from the world’s key abalone production countries, we now have the most credible abalone aquaculture standards in the marketplace,” said Abalone Aquaculture Dialogue Steering Committee member Vincent Encena from the Southeast Asian Fisheries Development Center.

The standards seek to minimise the key impacts associated with abalone farming. The certification process for these standards, and all of the standards developed by the Aquaculture Dialogues, will be overseen by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), which is expected to be operational by mid-2011. The standards will be reviewed at least every five years to incorporate new science and technology, as well as to encourage continuous improvement on farms.