Honduras shrimp farms celebrate ASC certification

Finca Granjas Marinas San Bernado farm in Honduras has successfully gained certification against the ASC standard for responsible shrimp farming. The Granjas Marinas Group operated site located in Choluteca, Honduras was successfully assessed by independent certifier Control Union Peru earlier in the year together with four of the companies’ other farms.

“At Ganjas Marinas Group we strongly believe in the value of responsible aquaculture. As a company, we support the robust criteria and transparency that the ASC programme requires certified farms to follow,” explained Victor Wilson Canessa, CEO Grupo Ganjas Marinas. “I am thrilled that our first farm has been successfully certified to the ASC standard and extremely proud of the teams that made it happen. I now look forward to seeing our Finca Crimasa, Finca Las Arenas, and Aquacultivos de Honduras (AQH) & Finca Cadelpa operations recently audited by Control Union Peru to meet the ASC’s standard.”

“I would like to extend my warm congratulation to the Granjas Marinas Group on their certification,” said Chris Ninnes, CEO of the ASC. “They join a growing group of shrimp farmers that value the improvements that achieving ASC certification brings. It is also interesting to see the increasing interest for ASC shrimp products in the market. Despite representing less than 7% of the total certified volume they account for over 30% of the products using the ASC logo. Through the commitments made by farms like Granjas Marinas Group, we are helping transform the world’s seafood markets and promote the best environmental and social aquaculture performance.”

The ASC Shrimp Standard was developed by hundreds of stakeholders globally, and the standard development process adheres to ISEAL’s Code of Good Practice for Setting Social and Environmental Standards.

The standard addresses the potential environmental and social impact of farming such as loss of biodiversity, use of feed and water resources, disease management, and effects on local communities. Certified farms must show that they actively minimise their impact on the surrounding natural environment, and that they operate in a socially responsible manner, caring for their employees and working with the local community.  

“Global aquaculture shrimp production is growing approximatively 10 percent annually. It´s currently one of the highest growth rates in aquaculture, so it´s great to see an increasing number of farms in Latin America building upon the example of Belize where 90% of shrimp farms are ASC certified.” said Andreas Lehnhoff, Director of WWF Guatemala / Mesoamerica.

WWF works with producers and buyers throughout Central America who want to reduce their environmental footprint and source in a more responsible way. Farms that meet the ASC shrimp standard deliver environmental benefits such as cleaner seabed, responsible use of water and feed and healthier shrimp because the standard addresses the transfer of viruses, which can reduce diseases. ASC certified farms also help to preserve natural ecosystems, and respect local labour conditions.

“The certification of the Granjas Marinas Group sites is an endorsement of their responsible practices. Through our Farmers In Transition Fund (FIT) we support producers that are clear in their desire to meet the highest standards for shrimp aquaculture. Our goal is to increase the responsible production of shrimp globally,” said Roy van Daatselaar, the Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH).