ASC concludes first summit visit to Vietnam

November 14, 2023 - Participants of the first ASC Summit to take place in Vietnam engaged with responsible farmers of shrimp and pangasius. Seafood buyers from across the globe embarked on a five-day (October 23-28, 2023) commercial visit to Vietnam, one of the leading aquaculture producing countries in the world.

The novel series of interactive ASC Summit activities include tours of certified seafood farms, processing facilities and feed mills all contributing to the responsible care and supply of ASC certified and labelled seafood to markets across the globe.

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Vietnam
ese seafood exports play a significant role worldwide, notably regarding the availability of ASC labelled responsibly farmed shrimp and pangasius. There are currently in Vietnam:

• Over 300 ASC certified shrimp farm sites
• Over 50 ASC certified pangasius farm sites
• Over 73,000 metric tonnes of ASC certified shrimp produced annually
• Almost 85,000 metric tonnes of ASC certified pangasius produced annually

The farmed seafood industry is growing at a speedy pace internationally and, compounded by the fact that over half of all seafood eaten globally comes from aquaculture, it is more important than ever for responsible practices to be implemented. It is also crucial for key seafood decision-makers to have the chance to see these producers in action, ask questions and engage in the discussion on the future of farmed seafood.

Mr Ssangjin Lee, Fish buyer and ESG Manager at Lottemart (Korea) stated: "I would like to thank ASC for inviting me to the summit. Visiting various aquaculture farms abroad was a great experience, and witnessing how advanced the production facilities are was especially impressive. The knowledge gained throughout the activities carried out will inform our future decisions in purchasing a variety of seafood, including ASC certified shrimp."

"The ASC Summit series continues to offer an educational experience that no other organisation is providing at this level for responsibly farmed seafood," commented Marcos Moya, ASC's Global Producer Outreach Lead. "We are connecting major retailers directly to the farmers whose seafood reaches the plates of consumers, and that is key to increasing positive impacts around environmental sustainability and social responsibility in aquaculture. Communicating the value behind ASC's label is critical to ensuring responsibly farmed seafood comes with strong assurance, verification and traceability from farm to store shelf."

ASC's Summit in Vietnam marked the final destination of the series for 2023, which previously brought seafood buyers from around the globe to visit shrimp farms in Ecuador (June 2023) and seabags and sea bream farms in Turkey (September 2023).

The immersive hands-on experience in Vietnam was the longest Summit to-date, with the most site visits, showcasing how certified farmers are using the ASC label to transparently demonstrate their sustainability performances, values and commitment to responsible seafood farming across sectors.

ASC will soon announce a new round of ASC Summit locations and dates for 2024, further expanding its footprint to more industry stakeholders in order to share the benefit of responsible seafood farming.

For more information, visit HERE.

The Aquaculturists

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