5272 Unilever fishing [2] 24/11/03 10:51 am Page C1 Fishing for the future II UNILEVER’S FISH SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE (FSI) U 5272 Unilever fishing [2] 24/11/03 10:51 am Page C2 Contents Chairmen’s message 1 Global fisheries under threat 2 Unilever’s fish business 4 Unilever’s Fish Sustainability Initiative (FSI) 6 The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) 8 Case studies 10 Marketing sustainable fish 12 Fish species used by Unilever 13 This brochure (published December 2003) updates the original (2002) Unilever’s corporate purpose Our purpose in Unilever is to meet the We will bring our wealth of knowledge We believe that to succeed requires the everyday needs of people everywhere – and international expertise to the highest standards of corporate to anticipate the aspirations of our service of local consumers – a truly behaviour towards our employees, consumers and customers and to multi-local multinational. consumers and the societies and world respond creatively and competitively in which we live. with branded products and services Our long-term success requires a total which raise the quality of life. commitment to exceptional standards This is Unilever’s road to sustainable, of performance and productivity, to profitable growth for our business and Our deep roots in local cultures and working together effectively and to a long-term value creation for our markets around the world are our willingness to embrace new ideas and shareholders and employees. unparalleled inheritance and the learn continuously. foundation for our future growth. Who we are Unilever is a multi-local multinational Unilever has two divisions – Foods and feeding people, our success depends with consumers, employees, business Home & Personal Care. Food brands on our companies being close to partners and shareholders on every include such well-known names as consumers and deeply rooted in the continent. Birds Eye, Hellmann’s, Iglo, Knorr, societies and environments in which Lipton and Magnum. Home & Personal we operate. The Unilever Group was created in Care brands include Dove, Lux, Omo, 1930 when the UK soap-maker Lever Pond’s and Sunsilk. Brothers merged its businesses with those of the Dutch margarine At the end of 2002, we employed producer, Margarine Unie. Unilever has 247,000 people and our turnover was operations in around 100 countries €48,760 million. By the very nature of and our products are on sale in 150. our business in cleaning, grooming and 5272 Unilever fishing [2] 24/11/03 10:52 am Page 1 Chairmen’s message In 1996 we ambitiously committed to source all our fish The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), which we helped from sustainable stocks. As one of the world's largest fish set up with the WWF, has established an increasingly well- buyers, we recognised the need to take the initiative and recognised global standard for sustainable fisheries. We work with others to make fishing more sustainable and, of continue to support its work and encourage our suppliers to course, to secure our fish supplies for the future. seek certification to the MSC Standard. Our fisheries work is one of our three sustainability In 2001, we started selling our first whitefish product made initiatives, alongside agriculture and water. These support from New Zealand hoki certified to the MSC Standard. our brands and our Path to Growth business strategy. Three important fisheries for Unilever – US Alaskan pollock, Chilean hake and South African hake – are making good All those involved in promoting sustainable fisheries – progress towards certification. This will significantly increase governments, companies such as ours and other the supply of certified fish, giving consumers a wider choice. stakeholders – face many complex challenges. At the end of 2002, we were buying more than a third of For example, there is a lack of conclusive scientific our fish from sustainable sources. By 2005 we expect the knowledge on the ecological impacts of fishing and a clear figure to rise to three quarters. Although it is short of our need to involve the communities who earn their livelihood 1996 target to source all our fish in this way by 2005, we from it. These important considerations contribute to the have demonstrated substantial progress. lengthy time it takes to certify fisheries as sustainable. Furthermore, some governments are slow in taking action We remain firmly committed to our goals and are to conserve their fish stocks. determined to help drive the whole fisheries market towards a sustainable future. However, by working closely with others we have made significant advances. Our suppliers have responded well to our strong encouragement to adopt sustainable fishing practices, which we assess using the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation’s guidelines. Antony Burgmans Niall FitzGerald Chairmen of Unilever FISHING FOR THE FUTURE II: UNILEVER’S FISH SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE 1 5272 Unilever fishing [2] 24/11/03 10:52 am Page 2 Global fisheries under threat Fish stocks worldwide are in serious decline: 48% are fully exploited, 16% overfished, and 9% depleted, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). GLOBAL WHITEFISH (GROUNDFISH) CATCH: DECLINE OF TEN MAJOR SPECIES* 14 12.1 12 11.4 10.3 9.5 10 9.1 9.0 9.2 9.1 8.68.6 8.7 8 7.4 6.8 6.5 6.3 6.5 6.6 6 m tonnes 4 2 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 Source: 1998-2001 FAO 2002-2004 Groundfish Forum Panel of Experts / own estimates * Includes cod, hake, haddock, hoki, Alaskan pollock, saithe. Important fisheries remain under political reasons and quotas were set Despite these problems, consumer threat. It is estimated that every year higher than recommended. In areas in demand for fish continues to grow. fishing practices kill up to 20 million which quotas were in line with the Seafood consumption in the US and metric tonnes of unwanted fish, science, controls were often ineffective Europe has doubled in the last seabirds, sea turtles, marine mammals and catches were too high. As a result, 30 years. From 1960 to 1996 and other ocean life. the total catch of the 10 major world fish production for human whitefish species almost halved consumption increased from There are social implications too. Many within 15 years. 27 million to 91 million tonnes. coastal communities throughout the world have been sustained by nearby Illegal and unreported fishing make the Damaging fishing techniques and fisheries for centuries and have problem worse. The FAO reports that decline in fish stocks have led to calls suffered severe loss of jobs and the “abusive practices take 30% of the for dramatic action on conservation. breakdown of social structures as a catch, in some important fisheries”. At the World Summit on Sustainable direct result of the decline in fish Development in 2002, governments stocks. One billion people in Asia and Over-exploitation of specific species agreed that fish stocks should be 20% of Africans depend on ocean fish also has a knock-on effect on marine restored “on an urgent basis and for all their protein. ecosystems of which they are a part. where possible not later than 2015”. Researchers have shown how over- Worldwide catches of the commercially fishing of one species disrupts the important whitefish (groundfish) species balance of marine ecosystems and (e.g. Alaskan pollock, cod, haddock threatens biological diversity. For and hake) have been in decline since example, a dramatic rise in the number the mid-1980s. The collapse of the cod of crown-of-thorns starfish, which fishery off Newfoundland in the early preys on coral reefs, has been 1990s reflects the problem that others attributed to the decline in the 1 Historical Overfishing and the Recent Collapse of Local Eco-Systems, Scripps Institution of face. Scientific evidence, when starfish’s natural predators that have Oceanography, University of California, available, was often neglected for been fished out 1. San Diego. Science, July 2001. 2 FISHING FOR THE FUTURE II: UNILEVER’S FISH SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE 5272 Unilever fishing [2] 24/11/03 10:52 am Page 3 South African hake Dr Keith Sainsbury “Fisheries, including aquaculture, provide a vital Senior Principal Research Scientist source of food, employment, recreation, trade CSIRO Marine Research in Australia and economic well-being for people throughout the world, both for present and future generations and should therefore be conducted in a responsible manner. The FAO Code of Many fisheries are now overfished, often with Conduct For Responsible Fisheries sets out devastating ecological, economic and social principles and international standards of consequences. But it is not all doom and gloom. behaviour for responsible practices with a view The requirements for sustainable fisheries are now to ensuring the effective conservation, widely understood and the number of well-managed management and development of living aquatic fisheries is growing. The commitment of companies resources, with due respect for the ecosystem such as Unilever to source products from well- and biodiversity.” managed and sustainable fisheries is vital to protect future supplies. By encouraging its suppliers to seek Introduction to the FAO Code of Conduct For Responsible certification to the Marine Stewardship Council Fisheries (1995). (MSC) Standard, Unilever promotes consumer Unilever’s sustainability assessment tool (see page 6) is based choice, rewards sustainable fisheries and sends a on the FAO Code. strong message to fisheries that do not yet meet the Standard. FISHING FOR THE FUTURE II: UNILEVER’S FISH SUSTAINABILITY INITIATIVE 3 5272 Unilever fishing [2] 24/11/03 10:53 am Page 4 Unilever’s fish business We are one of the world’s biggest buyers of fish. Our fish business relies on access to reliable supplies into the future.