Our activities are regulated by central and local government in Aotearoa/NZ and we are party to other agreements to maintain the sustainability of ocean resources.
The Fisheries Act 1996
We are subject to the Fisheries Act 1996 which incorporates the Quota Management System (QMS) and is administered by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI). We must disclose detailed information on every catch of wild fish we make.
There are strong incentives to comply with the Act, its supporting regulations and the QMS. We must not intentionally catch more than we are entitled to and the penalties for doing so are high. If we inadvertently catch more than we are entitled to, we must pay a financial penalty. If we see illegal fishing activity in Aotearoa/NZ’s waters, then we are incentivised to report it because it impacts the value of our quota and our future livelihood.
International fishing
We also fish (using long-liners) in Antarctic waters. Sanford are a founding member of the Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) and the Coalition of Legal Toothfish Operators. Sanford has joined others in the international community in efforts to reduce Illegal, Unregulated and Unreported (IUU) fishing, and we actively work with government officials and other commercial fisheries to report suspected IUU fishing of toothfish in the waters around Antarctica.
Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)
MSC is a global organisation dedicated to safeguarding seafood supplies both now and for future generations. Their many initiatives provide consumers with the reassurance that they are buying seafood caught in a sustainable manner. MSC’s main programme is fishery certification, which is then linked to MSC’s Chain of Custody certification. This is important as it helps to keep illegally fished seafood out of the supply chain by linking seafood sold in shops and restaurants to a certified sustainable fishery.
Sanford is committed to conforming to MSC Chain of Custody requirements and has implemented a MSC Management System to ensure that the Chain of Custody is maintained throughout the group.
Marine Consents
We must have consents from local governments to use the marine area for our aquaculture farms. These consents come with conditions, and we must monitor the environment in relation to these conditions. We report to the relevant local government body on how our operation is impacting the environment and what we are doing to keep it healthy.