“The loss of MSC certification for cod caught within 12 nautical miles of the coast has not led to a lower price for this cod,” Geir Sogn-Grundvåg says.
He is a senior scientist at Nofima.
“After we have accounted for other factors such as fishing gear and area, the loss of MSC certification has had no effect,” Ingrid K. Pettersen adds.
She is an associate professor at the Norwegian College of Fishery Science, UiT The Arctic University of Norway.
The cod fishery in the north consists of local coastal cod and Northeast Atlantic cod that have migrated from the Barents Sea to the Norwegian coast.
While the Barents Sea cod was MSC certified in 2010, the coastal cod was certified in 2011 and was subject to an approved development plan. It has not been successful.
Because the coastal cod mixes with the migrating Northeast Atlantic cod during the winter season, all cod caught within 12 nautical miles of the coast (north of the 62nd parallel) lost their MSC certification on 15 August 2021.
“This provided a unique opportunity to study whether the main idea behind MSC certification holds water. In other words, price premiums are given for certified products in the end markets, and these are shared with fishermen and lead to more sustainable management and fishing practices,” Sogn-Grundvåg says.
Commissioned by the Norwegian Seafood Research Fund, scientists have therefore studied the price-related consequences of the loss of MSC certification for cod caught within 12 nautical miles of the coast.
The Norwegian fisheries industry has invested significant amounts in MSC certification of the most important Norwegian fisheries. This is based on the assumption that such certification is crucial in terms of access to many of the most attractive seafood markets. However, the actual significance of these investments has not been investigated using scientific methods.
The scientists point out that in order to study the effect of the loss of MSC certification, it is important to take other factors into account that may affect price, and which may have changed after the loss of certification.
Several consumer studies in northern European markets show that there is a price premium for MSC-labelled seafood in some markets and segments.
“However, in the large southern European markets such as Spain, Portugal and Italy, where around 40 per cent of cod from Norway is consumed, there seems to be low demand for MSC-certified fish,” Ingrid K. Pettersen says.
Geir Sogn-Grundvåg, who has led the analysis work, believes it is important to state that there is no doubt that sustainability is important.
The next phase of the project is to study whether Norwegian exporters achieve price premiums for certified cod and whether this varies for different products and markets.