The MSC Sustainable Fisheries Certification Programme requires that all fisheries undergo a Pre-Assessment Evaluation prior to proceeding to a Full Assessment.  This step of the certification process is critical and can be highly beneficial to the candidate fishery.  The benefits of the Pre-Assessment Evaluation are as follows:

• The Pre-Assessment Evaluation is completely confidential, there are no stakeholder notifications or public announcements made to reference an ongoing Pre-Assessment;
  
  
• Confidentiality allows candidate fisheries the option to privately consider all benefits
  
  
• The costs of a Pre-Assessment are low in comparison to a Full Assessment;
  
  
• The Pre-Assessment Evaluation results will provide definitive goals in areas that need to be improved prior to a Full Assessment,
  
  
• The Pre-Assessment Report format is prescribed to all certification bodies to ensure that the produced reports provide the same information;
  
  
• The resulting Pre-Assessment Report should clearly define the weaknesses that are expected to arise in a Full Assessment;
  
  
• The Pre-Assessment enforces the education process, by allowing the candidate fishery to fully understand the process, they are better prepared to organize information in a manner that will allow for an efficient Full Assessment.
  

The MSC Principles and Criteria Certification Process

A flowcraft diagram illustrating the certification process. Download Here.

Application Information Kit

66.8K PDF file. Contains general information about the certification process, as well as Sustainable Fishery Certification and Chain of Custody Certification Forms. Download here.

Or for more information, contact TAVEL Certification Inc. directly.

First Step to Chain of Custody Certification

Assessment:

If your organization purchases fish or wishes to purchase fish products from a fishery that has been certified as being “a well managed and sustainable fishery” under the MSC Sustainable Fisheries programme, your company may be eligible to benefit from the application of the MSC Logo to the certified product.  The prescribed Chain of Custody Certification conducted by TAVEL Certification verifies that the product originated in the certified fishery and has moved through the supply chain in a manner that ensures that it has not been adulterate with other non-certified product.

In the Chain of Custody Certification, a TAVEL Certification Assessor will verify the documentation and recording systems employed by your company to ensure that certified product is requested and received and that there is no opportunity for improper labeling of other non-certified product.

Much of the Chain of Custody requirements of the MSC are covered through such industry standards as HACCP and FDA Process Licensing requirements. Two key areas that are typically not considered in other quality assurance plans are

• Proof that product is not co-mingled with other fish at any point in the chain; and
  
  
• Proof that labels placed on product at any point along the chain are properly affixed on only certified product

MSC Chain of Custody Certification Process

A diagram illustrating the critical path process of Chain of Custody Certification. Download Here.

Chain of Custody Certification Form

17.1K PDF file. Contains Chain of Custody Certification form only. Download Here.

Or for more information, contact TAVEL Certification Inc. directly.

Technical Note

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