ORGANIC CERTIFICATION OF FARMED SEAFOOD

Organic Standards

Organic aquaculture standards mirror many of the principles of organic agriculture, focusing on the production methods and husbandry of the farmed species. While the standards of individual labels may differ, the ultimate goal of all these certification programs is to promote practices that are environmentally sound and minimize negative impacts on the aquatic environment.

Current organic seafood programs utilize ecolabels to allow consumers to directly identify organically farmed and certified products at the point of sale. Given the increased consumer demand for naturally and organically produced food worldwide, organic aquaculture has the potential to grow into a much larger market in the future.

Organic certification programs have recently been developed by several private and governmental aquaculture organizations in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. Below is a list of organic seafood certification bodies:

Additional Resources:

The U.S. has yet to determine standards for organic aquaculture, as the issue is surrounded by considerable controversy, particularly for carnivorous fish raised in open-ocean pens. The final recommendations by the National Organic Standards Board to the National Organic Program were sent forward in November 2008. If approved, they will go to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for final approval. The standards related to net pens and fish feed are below: