WILD SEAFOOD

SUSTAINABLY

HARVESTED

Raincoast Trading is committed to fishing with integrity and preserving the well-being of our world marine ecosystems. We wholeheartedly support efforts to minimize overfishing, bycatch, habitat damage, and problems associated with farmed salmon.

raincoast-concept-header

Raincoast Trading’s Traceability

As part of our ongoing commitment to quality and sustainability, we have designed a system to track the fish from can back to boat. Production codes on the bottom of Raincoast cans give an expiry date and can be used to trace the origin of the fish. With this code, we can identify the vessel, captain, name, vessel flag, harvest method, area of capture, and trip dates.

This information is critical in substantiating a sustainability claim. We can (and do) give this information to ocean conservation groups as part of their auditing systems. This provides them the tools they need to declare Raincoast Trading a great sustainable seafood choice!

Issues our industry is addressing

OVERFISHING
Global consumption of seafood has doubled since the 1970's. Today roughly 130 million tons of seafood is harvested every year. Longlining and other unsustainable fishing methods remove fish and other marine life from the ocean faster than the rate at which they reproduce. It is estimated that 90% of all large, predatory fish are already gone from our oceans since industrialized fishing began. We are now fishing the last 10% of species such as tunas, swordfish, and sharks.
Source: Ocean Wise™
BYCATCH
An estimated 25% of what is caught in commercial fisheries is unintended catch and discarded. Bycatch can include unmarketable species, undersized species, and endangered species. Unfortunately the majority of the animals tossed back overboard do not survive. It is important to understand how your seafood has been harvested. Some fishing gear types, like pelagic or surface longlining and bottom trawling can increase the likelihood and amount of bycatch. Source: Ocean Wise™
HABITAT DAMAGE
Certain fishing and farming practices can have negative impacts on critical marine or aquatic habitats. With the loss of crucial habitats such as spawning, nursery, breeding or sheltering areas, many species find it challenging to survive, let alone thrive. Communities such as coral reefs, kelp forests, mangroves and wetlands provide critical habitats for a wide array of organisms and damage to these key areas can have dramatic consequences.
Source: Ocean Wise™

Our Role

Raincoast Trading only sources from fisheries with sustainable stocks and from fishers who adhere to responsible fishing methods (such as pole-and-line tuna fishing). We ensure that all of our fish can be tracked from boat to can and that this information can be made available to consumers.

 

Because of this, Raincoast Trading is the first Canadian packaged retail seafood company endorsed by the respected Ocean Wise™ conservation program as an environmentally-friendly seafood choice for retail grocers and consumers around the world.