Stores reject 'at-risk' fish call

Supermarkets have rejected calls by Greenpeace to follow overseas supermarkets and stop selling "at-risk" fish such as orange roughy.

A report released yesterday by Greenpeace asked supermarkets in the Progressive Enterprises and Foodstuffs chains to adopt policies requiring all seafood on their shelves to be sustainably caught.

Foodstuffs managing director Tony Carter said there was no need for a special policy because all fish caught in New Zealand was sustainably managed under the Quota Management System (QMS).

Despite the QMS, some British supermarket chains have stopped selling orange roughy, including New Zealand-caught fish, because of environmental concerns.

British chain Waitrose said it stopped selling the deep sea fish because trawling methods used to catch it damaged the ocean floor.

A spokesman for Progressive Enterprises, which owns Foodtown, Woolworths and Countdown, said the company had been working with the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification body to improve sustainability of its seafood supply.

"We strongly emphasise our position on sustainable sourcing with all our suppliers; however, we have limited visibility across the supply chain, making it difficult to guarantee that everyone in the supply chain is doing the right thing," he said.

Greenpeace New Zealand oceans campaigner Karli Thomas said new policies were needed because supermarkets were not providing shoppers with basic information such as fish species, where it was caught and how. "Some products, particularly in the freezer section, just say '37 per cent fish'," she said.

According to fisheries company Sealord, New Zealand has the biggest known orange roughy fisheries in the world.

Exports of orange roughy earned the country $56 million in 2007.

Under the QMS, 13,150 tonnes can be caught in New Zealand waters each year. Most is sent overseas, but some is packaged and sold here under the Sealord brand.

Mr Carter, whose company runs the Pak'n Save and New World brands, said it was up to the Government and not supermarkets to make sure fishing quotas were appropriate.

Greenpeace has argued little is known about many fish stocks that are managed under the QMS.

Its latest report says the QMS maintains fish at "tipping point" so any errors in catch limits could see fish stocks drop too low to sustain themselves.

Fisheries Minister Phil Heatley said an announcement yesterday by the fishing industry took the total of NZ's landed catch either carrying the MSC's tick or undergoing the MSC certification process to about a third.