Charting a Path Towards Sustainable Seafood Resources in India: The Role of Voluntary Sustainable Standards

Abstract

Fish production in India has grown rapidly in recent years. Increased production and the growing importance of the fisheries sector to the Indian economy has however not been without environmental and social effects. Globally, Voluntary Sustainability Standards (VSS) are becoming important tools to support efforts to promote sustainability of seafood resources, and worldwide about 23 million tonnes of seafood have been certified to VSS. Uptake of VSS for seafood in India is still in its early stages and India’s contribution to certified volumes is small. Similar to other developing countries, a range of factors including cost, ecological performance and data availability have constrained large-scale uptake of VSS. Nonetheless, recent developments, including persistent market demand for sustainable seafood, increased recognition of the role of VSS and government support for their uptake point to a future growth trajectory in the use of VSS in the seafood sector in India.