Amidst the marine catch crisis that has hit fishermen’s livelihoods in the state, a sustainability certification programme is underway to certify shrimps and cephalopods caught in Kerala trawl fishing nets.
The certification process initiated by the Seafood Exporters Association, along with the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), is now in its final stages of pre-assessment. Called the Fishery Improvement Process (FIP), it is a kind of ecolabelling that will deem the catch as having less impact or damage to the environment.
He said India’s commitment to SDG-14 targets life below water and also SDG-2, 8 and 12, and these are linked to certification.
Two fisheries in Kerala are under the FIP. They are the shrimp and cephalopod trawl fishery and the deep-sea shrimp trawl fishery. “These are in the fourth year of pre-assessment which includes the entire process from catch in the net to the plate on the dining table. We will be having an annual review meeting to discuss the FIPs on June 6-7 in Kochi. A national dialogue is also being planned with officials from the fisheries ministry, Niti Aayog, research and academic institutions to discuss the fishery certification in meeting the SD goals,” said Ranjit Suseelan, MSC India-head.
The short-neck clam (Paphia malabarica) fishery in the Ashtamudi Lake was the first to receive India’s Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification in 2014. However, the 2018 floods devastated the fishery, which is slowly moving back to business. “We have learnt a lot from the problems in that fishery. But that is limited to a small region. However, the present species will certify the specific fishery caught in the trawler nets,” said Sunil Mohammed.