You’ve heard the old saying – if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Case in point: Last month, Cooke Aquaculture, one of the largest salmon farming companies in the world, proclaimed in its press release and social media posts “True North Seafood officially recommended as sustainable by Ocean Wise”. Some media outlets have amplified the misrepresentation. So, let’s set the record straight.
Contrary to Cooke’s statement, only a part of the True North Seafood brand and associated products are endorsed by Ocean Wise.
Stating that the True North Seafood brand is “recommended as sustainable” by the Ocean Wise program could mislead unsuspecting shoppers to assume all of their seafood, including the brand’s net-pen farmed Atlantic salmon, is Ocean Wise endorsed. When in fact, it is not.
Why does this matter? Large corporations overreaching their green credentials is, unfortunately, nothing new. However, the negative ramifications from misleading green claims can be far reaching.
As outlined in our recently released study, Certification, Verification or Fabrication? An investigation of seafood environmental claims in Canadian retailers, misleading claims can lead to consumer confusion and skepticism towards all environmental claims. At worst, they have the potential to undermine efforts aimed at improving fishery and aquaculture sustainability.
A YouGov poll conducted simultaneously with our study found that 83% of Canadians are “somewhat to very concerned” about greenwashing and that 78% of Canadians who purchase seafood would likely stop purchasing a seafood product if its claim were found to be greenwashing.
There’s no hiding that Cooke Aquaculture has had some not-so-green practices. For example, the company was fined by Washington State for violations associated with the 2017 collapse of their Cypress Island net pen farm that released 250,000 farmed salmon escapees into Puget Sound. Their Kelly Cove division was charged and pleaded guilty to illegal pesticide use that was connected with the deaths of hundreds of lobsters in the Bay of Fundy in 2009. Overly simplified public relation assertions won’t erase these track records.
The Ocean Wise program works with its partners to encourage improvements in their sustainability practices and procurement. SeaChoice sincerely hopes positive gains for our oceans are made through the partnership.
But we call on Cooke to represent the partnership truthfully and accurately. That is, that the partnership does not mean the True North brand (or Cooke) is recommended as Ocean Wise, but rather that some of Cooke’s True North branded products are Ocean Wise recommended. In turn, these recommended products should be clearly labelled Ocean Wise on the True North website and on product packages.
Because at the end of the day, we should be able to trust any claims that are made on the products we buy. Environmental claims and eco-labels are meant to make shopping for sustainable seafood easier, not harder.
