Review of proposed changes to the MSC Fisheries Standard

Welcome to the review of the proposed changes to the MSC Fisheries Standard

This consultation is open to all stakeholders for 60 days from 1 February, closing on 4 April at 0700 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC). An understanding of the MSC Fisheries Standard and certification process will help you effectively participate in this consultation.

Background to this consultation
The MSC carries out formal reviews of the MSC Fisheries Standard to make sure our assessment and certification system remain the leading measure of fisheries sustainability.

Since this current review started in 2018, the MSC has developed new policy through a rigorous multi-step, multi-stakeholder process, engaging with different sectors. Gathering evidence from a wide range of scientific sources to support our policies helps ensure our policies are effective at delivering the MSC's intent, feasible for fisheries to implement and acceptable to stakeholders. We have conducted our own research, reviewed research carried out by independent scientists, spoken directly with experts, solicited advice from our governance bodies and tested proposed revisions in mock assessments to ensure the proposed changes deliver MSC's intent, are feasible and auditable.

As part of this review we have already publicly consulted on those projects with the greatest complexity and potential to change the intent of the Standard or lead to high-impact changes to requirements. Many of those consultations were done to ensure that stakeholders agreed with the intent of any proposed revisions. More information on past consultations can be found on the MSC website.

This final review of the draft revised MSC Fisheries Standard, certification process and guidance is focused on ensuring that the proposed revisions are effective at delivering their intended outcome and checking whether they are broadly acceptable to stakeholders.

You can find draft versions of the proposed revised MSC Fisheries Standard and associated program documents here.

Instructions for this survey
In this survey you will be shown a list of proposed changes and asked to indicate which changes you wish to comment on. The survey will then show you the questions related to those topics. You can provide comment on as many or as few topics as you would like.

On each topic page you will see links to background information. It is recommended that you read the background information closely before answering the questions.

A version of the Standard with tracked changes is available upon request by emailing standards@msc.org.

You may wish to to download a PDF of the survey in advance. This will allow you to view and share all the questions before providing answers.

Note that this survey will take considerable time to complete, depending on how much feedback you wish to provide.

You will not be able to save your progress and return later.

If you cannot do this survey for any reason, you feel language is a barrier to participation or you have any other questions, please email us at standards@msc.org. We will do our best to accommodate your request.

3% of survey complete.